Birthing Breakfast

Story by Amethyst Mare on SoFurry

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#2 of The Gryphon and Her Boy

The gryphoness doesn't wish to let her boy disappear down her gullet like the rest of her larder, but sometimes one is left with no other choice. And what is she to do when another gryphon comes on to the scene? Raunchy liaisons await...


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Go get a cuppa for this one as it's going to be a long read. No need to worry about the vore, if that's not your thing, as it doesn't come into play right until the end and there is good warning beforehand. I think I wrote this one in two days, which is pretty good, admittedly. Took me a while to get on with it but I did some background reading (Kalan's 'Dark Desires' is AMAZING) to try to write erotic horror and I really think I'm getting a personal handle on it now. Can't help but think of vore to be murder so, in essence, I am trying to make murder sexy (in my mind). I keep feeling...weird when I eat after writing/editing this story though. It feels wrong. Chicken sandwich? Nah, not hungry anymore...thanks.

Also, if you comment "but I don't like vore" in that tone, I'll bloody vore you, got it? Thank you! :)

Story (c) me, Amethyst Mare

Characters (c) to and commissioned by preyitem

p.s. I promise to edit in the correct formatting later. Just seemed too...oh my goodness. TOO MUCH writing! O_O Also, I see lots of red lines upon submitting. Remember UK English here, please! :)

p.p.s. I am pretty damn pleased with my version of the courting flight.


Birthing Breakfast

Written by Amethyst Mare / Arian Mabe for preyitem

The gryphoness took flight in a feathered flurry, copper wing-tips caressing the late night breeze as she ascended to the stars. Leaving her cave far behind, she lost herself in the solitude of her world, rolling hillocks stretching out for miles before her. Everything was within the reach of her claws if she so dared to snatch it up with a possessive screech. In the not so far off distance, she caught a glimpse of the human village where her female friends resided, a flicker of flame denoting a slave male hard at work cooking through the night. She hoped it was something tasty for her friends, a special dish. Her leonine tail swung lazily from side to side, stomach pleasantly full from her meal but not so that she was in any discomfort flying. Overall, the satyr had been the ideal evening meal and now rested quieted in the pit of her belly.

Ah, when had meals become such an issue? And, more curiously, why? Her orange eyes blinked unerringly as she soared high above the land - her land. Her latest larder tribute from the village had been a case indeed, proving his worth as a human slave, male, of course. From pleasing her in the bedroom to acting as a general servant, she had not quite been able to bring herself to devour him while enjoying his use as a living being. Considering his use and potential, she could not understand why he had been so shaken when she had put him to bed. She had only eaten a satyr after cooking him alive. Did he expect her to eat raw meat? She shuddered, feathers bristling. Boys were so silly sometimes!

Banking with the wind, she followed the line of stars north, enjoying the cool caress upon her feathers and fur. Let the little human have his complaints. She was sure that he ate meat too - what was the difference whether the meat was alive or dead to him? It was none of her concern.

So caught up in her thoughts was Arianna, the gryphoness, that she almost missed the fresh scent on the breeze, drifting down from the mountain range cutting through her territory. Huffing a breath, she pulled up in midair, hovering in a great display of skill. Wings beat the air as she investigated the scent, filtering it through her senses, and her beak parted in the semblance of a gryphon smile. Now that was a scent she had not had the pleasure of in too many years. Screeching her presence in both challenge and welcome, she flapped her wings above the wind, using its shape to direct her flight to the foot of the mountains with due haste.

It did not take long to come upon her old friend. Having heard her cry, the male gryphon circled several hundred metres above the ground, waiting, his feathers as black as the darkest night and leonine body a rich brown. The male cried out shrilly, the keen long and drawn out, calling for companionship. Clacking her beak, she dove at him in challenge - her territory! - and banked at the last second, talons brutally yanking free several feathers from the back of his neck. Though he hissed, the male gryphon dipped his beak submissively, accepting her dominance with a twinkle in one sharp, aquamarine eye. The gryphoness levelled out into a glide, wingtips spread, inviting him closer with a flick of her tail once their positions had been duly set. Even male gryphons were below females when it came to tests of rights, feeding and dominance. In testimony to this, he waited for her to speak first, flying at her side but behind her shoulder, thus ensuring she directed the course of their shared flight.

"Drest," she greeted him at last. "It has been too long, my friend."

"Arianna," he murmured in turn, formal. "Your territory has expanded over the years. I have not had the pleasure of crossing talons with you since we shared a stag on Midsummer's Eve."

"A scrawny stag at that," she scoffed. "All you could catch at the time. Have your skills improved any, or are you still feeding on rabbits?"

"I assure you, fair lady, that I would catch you the fattest stag if so allowed opportunity once more."

Laughing at what she considered a jest, the gryphoness flapped twice, gaining height in a show of prowess and in order to display her strong body to the smaller male, tawny hide rippling with muscle. He watched her hungrily, privately enjoying flying below her both for the view and the show of dominance. At one time in their past he had courted her, sought her as his life mate, but she, of course, had rejected him with a mere flick of her talons. He could discern from her scent that she had not claimed another as her mate, for reasons unfathomable: Arianna could have claimed any male she desired. Inhaling deeply, he took in her ripe aroma; the lingering notes of sexual arousal made his softly furred balls tingle wantonly. His beak parted and he flapped bravely, showing off his body as his male lust swelled on the updraft. The gryphoness glanced down at him, unimpressed by his physique, yet ever considering the possibilities.

"Where have your travels taken you?" She enquired, tail flicking against his wing; the touch made the smaller male shiver.

"Nowhere that would be of interest to a lady as fine as you," he answered smoothly, to his credit, despite the warmth building beneath the surface of his skin.

It was the accepted response but she would have rolled her eyes if it had been physically possible; custom, manners and 'rules' were a drag at times. Regardless, she admitted that it was nice to have a male that knew his place, much better than the whimpering ones lining her larder. Her boy was nice to have around the cave but he could not fill her sex like a gryphon, his little cock worthless to her in that aspect. Taking a deep breath, the gryphoness curled her forelegs up to her chest, talons grasping at emptiness, a twitch brought forth by bubbling desire.

"Has a mate taken you Drest?" She asked abruptly.

The male lost a foot of height before recovering, eyes shining speculatively. Arianna smiled: she could have him so easily.

"No, I have not." He almost preened. "Why does this question come to light?"

She did not answer, considering the idea self-explanatory - it was not down to her to explain it as if to a hatchling if he could not come to the correct conclusion. Thankfully for her wrath, Drest was not a fool. Flying closer, his wingtips brushed hers, hunger uncurling like a snake in the depths of his belly. Breath came harsh in his throat and he swept his tail imtimately around hers, teasing the length and rejoicing in the delicious shiver she gave in response.

Perfectly in tune with one another, the gryphons danced through the sky. Their graceful dives and arcs contested the stars for beauty and not a wisp of cloud dared scorn the sky while the slender sliver of moon watched her charges' courting dance. Drest chased the gryphoness when she darted away, challenging him to prove his agility, and nipped the tip of her tail, startling a growl from her beak. She turned on him, whipping about, and buffeted him back through the air with strong strokes of her wings, sending the dark-feathered male tumbling beak over paws for a heart-stopping moment. He managed to right himself, however, and, though ruffled, lashed his tail playfully, blue eyes gleaming with polite wit.

Not one for patience or permitting her male more leeway than necessary, the gryphoness flew in close, snatching up his offered talons. Thus locked together, their flight slowed and turned into a deathly freefall, the duo spinning wildly as they plummeted. Arianna screeched, folding her wings against her back, bidding the male to follow suit, and they dropped like a single stone towards the ground, mountain slopes rushing up to meet them at a terrifying pace. Closing her eyes, the gryphoness imagined that the freefall would continue forever, their talons locked in a deathly embrace, the wind ever kissing her feathers with her cool lips.

Checking their fall, breath rushed from her lungs and she gasped, the wind tearing her exclamation away in a screech. The male flapped and tugged at her talons, eyes widened into glassy orbs, tail flicking into her flank; he leaned in anxiously, a low growl rumbling in his barrel chest. With her sharp eyes, the gryphoness could have counted the stones on the slope below, dangerously close. Hissing, the male scrambled against her with his hind paws, struggling to break free, flap his wings and escape an untimely death, lesser instincts taking over. Arianna took heed and cast her gaze down: close - they were too close! At the last possible moment, she released the male's talons, turning sharply and flaring her wings, one wing brushing the stony ground as she thrust the male away.

Screaming in exhilarating fear, the male gryphon caught at her talons, shooting away like a bullet a stomach-turning few metres across the ground. He flapped like a hatchling, stumbling on to a raised spur of rock, talons digging into crevices for purchase while his chest heaved. Silhouetted against the grey stone, he stared adoringly up at the gryphoness and fluttered his wings in what he hopped was an appeasing manner. He danced from hind paw to paw and leapt in one smooth bound to the gentle slope below the outcrop, wings proudly spread as he keened for her to join him, completing their night time liaison.

Above, the gryphoness banked sharply, turning directly about: she had to have him. She landed with a clatter at the peak of the slope, scattering pebbles in all directions and darted towards him. He pounced to meet her, bowing his forelegs as if to play, and was startled to be roughly bowled over by her in a squawking, feathery bundle. Growling, he snapped his beak, but she was not dissuaded, stalking over and silencing him with one heavy talon on his chest, the sharp point pricking through his feathers. The black male fell still, the only motion that of his chest as he took in shallow breaths.

Her proximity played him like a finely tuned instrument - one of the devices Arianna had seen in her friends' village - and the male groaned, red member slipping erotically from its dark sheath. The corners of the gryphoness' eyes narrowed seductively and she pressed down harder upon his chest, ignoring his struggle to breathe beneath her.

"Some male you are," she teased, licking the corner of his beak. "So easily pinned."

Drest brought his forelegs up to his chest like a begging pup, utterly submissive in her skilled talons. She was unwilling to waste time, fiery need smouldering in her loins until she doubted whether one breeding session would quell it quite to her satisfaction. Stepping between his spread hind legs, she rested upon his smooth chest and stomach and slid back until the barbed cock teased her exposed vent; her leonine tail curled up over her back. Whining, the gryphon tried to thrust but was swiftly put in his place. She clamped her beak over his throat, growled her first warning, and bore down with her hips, forcing his tapered cock-head into her slick, aroused snatch. He gulped and hooked a talon around her foreleg.

Head so bowed, Arianna shivered, driving her male's phallus deep into her sex, the barbs catching at her soft passage and raking_through as she drew off him for another buck of her hips. He was _hers! She would have dared any female to challenge her right then and she would have scored such a scar across their pride that they would never brush a feather into her territory ever again. Hissing warm breath over his feathered throat, she humped back, rolling her hips sensuously to repeatedly impale herself on his shaft. The rough, harsh pleasure was of a different ilk to that provided by her boy but, after the rash freefall, it was inexplicably right above all else. Releasing his neck, she thrust her hips like a male, taking him brutally so that Drest squirmed and panted beneath her greater, powerful weight.

"Ah, perhaps you have some uses, Drest," she gasped, feeling the barbed cock rake through her inner walls. "You may be 'demoted' to guard my cave. If you can, ah, handle that."

The mating was not enough to satisfy her as her boy pleased her cunt, but it was enough to sate the need in her womb. Hammering her pussy harshly over Drest's cock, she ignored his screeches of discomfort, rapidly pushing him towards climax while he twisted beneath her. Though he was trapped and forced to take every inch of coarse pleasure she offered, the male gryphon clawed at her hide, head falling back under her spell. Stones gathered in the small of his back, dirtying his feathers, and he rocked up once, keening loudly. It was too late to hold back! His balls tightened between his hind legs and his cock twitched, pouring virile gryphon seed into her hot passage.

"Such a weak, little gryphon," she growled, shuddering as spurt after spurt of seed flooded her fertile womb and pussy. "Overpowered and forced to mate... If you are a good servant in my cave, I may take you again."

"Yes, ma'am," he grunted, too breathless to say anything else.

Chuckling throatily, Arianna pushed herself off the male, leaving him panting in a mess of loose feathers, softening cock drooling cum over his lower stomach. Looking him over, it was no wonder that males were less than females; she could never have taken him as mate, let alone co-habit with him. Yet he had served his purpose. Reaching over her shoulder, she yanked loose a stray feather, preening smugly as he watched her, blinking slowly and altogether unmoving. She shook herself, stretched out both wings, and cocked her beak at the male.

"I expect to see you in my cave soon," she murmured, leaving no option for compromise or, feather forbid, outright disagreement.

He nodded compliantly and rolled on to his side, watching wistfully as the gryphoness launched herself into the sky. Her wing beats carried her rapidly homeward to her comfortable sleeping quarters, all with a well bred pussy full of seed.

*

Upon waking the next morning in her downy sleeping hollow, set carefully into the cave floor for warmth, the gryphoness blinked in slow awakening. Her head rested on top of a pile of soft blankets - more gifts from her friends, happily received. In her private chamber, natural light fed through a skylight and a lantern fixed into the stone wall burned low, the wick within almost burned out. Something had changed. Sleepily, she stretched out muscles stiffened by rest, having slept soundly since returning from her meeting with Drest. But that was not what had changed: there was something else, something more. Curious, she rolled her shoulders, testing every limb, every muscle, for change, some kind of weakness that caused this distinct sense of shift in the core of her being.

Oh...

Her beak parted in wonder and the gryphoness rolled on to her side, caressing the smooth fur along her stomach. There was no doubt: her fresh scent denoted the presence of a daughter tucked within her womb, the egg quickened. She flooded with warmth, crooning softly as she curled in on herself, nudging her flank in undue welcome, simply unable to help herself. A daughter! Everything was perfect.

Twitching a wing out, she preened meticulously, tail flicking. The knowledge that she was soon to lay an egg and raise a hatchling to know the world was incredible, but there were needs of the body begging attention. One thing had been missing from her brief liaison and she had the ideal remedy for that itch.

She sprang lightly to her paws, stalking from the room with a cheerful swish of her tail. Little improved her mood like a good mating. Drest was a good lay, for a male. Her toy lay on his back with his arms wrapped around his chest and a frown on his strange, flat muzzle. The human murmured in his sleep, sensing her presence, and rolled his head, eyes moving sightlessly beneath lowered lids. The gryphoness ruffled her feathers, orange eye glinting, and sat down without ceremony on top of his unconscious face.

He started awake, his world dark, warm, and breath difficult to come by. Not knowing where he was for those moments between sleep and full wakefulness, he fought, beating his fists against the furry warmth. The gryphoness rumbled warningly and he dropped his hands immediately to the ground, shocked that he had dared hit his lady! Fortunately for him, she barely noticed his weak hands thumping her flanks, grinding down into his face as she was: her focus was solely upon her own pleasure. Growling low so that her chest vibrated, not unlike a feline purring, she ground back so that his nose pressed between her folds and, obediently, he started to lick.

Her taste was stronger than usual and the boy wondered at how her pussy oozed moisture already. Seeing that she did not become aroused like human ladies, it was an unusual experience and he had experience of servicing both animals and the ladies from the village, boasting plenty of experience to draw upon. He could not spend a deal of time pondering, however. Scratching his fingers gently through the fur on her large, muscular thighs, he drove his tongue deep into her sex, easily parting her folds. Her hot passage rippled as if to squeeze around something much larger than his tongue. The boy moaned.

Keening her pleasure, the gryphoness fluttered her wings, loose feathers drifting to the ground around her toy's makeshift bed. His corner was dimly lit and such a small chamber that she was unable to fully spread her wings within the confined space; she should have dragged him to her sleeping chamber instead to avoid the space constraints. Beneath her fragrant sex, the boy groaned, the sound muffled as his tongue flicked rapidly, darting in and out of her in a way that made the normally composed gryphoness hiss pleasurably. Cowed by her viciousness, he dug his tongue deep into her, swirling it around her clit and teasing her vulva. Her breath came in loud pants - what need did she have to calm animalistic passion? - and she brutally ground over his tongue, bearing down without regard for his need to breathe.

As she demanded he bring her to increasing heights of pleasure, the boy squirmed, his lower body limp. His nose rubbed against her swollen clit, sending sparks of ecstasy rocketing through her system, and he gasped for breath, tongue thrust as deep as possible. The gryphoness shuddered bodily, tail slinking down to wrap possessively around her toy's leg, not that she needed to hold him still: she liked to do so. She rocked her hips back for a moment - the boy sucked in a hasty breath - and ground across his lips. All this made the majority of his furious licking superfluous to her pleasure, which she took for herself whether he liked it or not. Lavishing attention over her feminine folds, he strove to keep up with her pace, sore tongue curling into her pussy as she panted, muscles tensing in testimony to her impending orgasm. With a feral cry, she stomped a hind paw and flooded his mouth with a burst of feminine fluid, screaming in blissful orgasm.

Chest heaving, the boy swallowed as much of her fluids as he could, though the majority dripped over his chin, smeared there by her grinding hips. The gryphoness tucked her wings against her sides, hind paw kicking aside the blankets that had somehow become tangled there; mating was an untidy ordeal. She would have her boy put his chamber in order again. With a satisfied sigh, she stepped off her toy, tail sweeping over his stomach and chest. Despite his exhaustion, he arched into the touch, his body adoring what could have been a lover's caress. She chuckled at his expression, sucking much needed air into his lungs, and the creamy mess on his face and neck. He was a sight. Her stomach growled and she turned to more pressing, immediate matters.

"Clean yourself, boy," she ordered, already turning away. "I'm going for breakfast."

The male's eyes widened fearfully and she paused, struck by unusual kindness that morning. Did the male have to see her feed? He was more useful to her when he was not blubbering like a hatchling. Rubbing the feminine juices off his face with little effect, he swallowed hard, mind already darting to what 'breakfast' entailed. The gryphoness sighed. He could have been a little stupider or at least blind to her diet, as if there was anything wrong with it. But she was kind.

"Stay here," the gryphoness added after some thought, the very tip of her tail flicking as she strode from his small chamber, leaving only her scent behind.

Confound it!

The boy grabbed the uppermost blanket, due for a wash in the stream, and used it to scrub the last drops of gryphoness arousal from his face, though there was no removing the scent, which lingered terribly. When he lowered the blanket, the gryphoness was gone, leaving him alone with the all too familiar sensation of an aching hard-on. How could he be so turned on from that? Her scent, the feel of the gryphoness and the way she rubbed against him, both feline and eagle at once, tantalising sensuality. The boy snarled soundlessly. Screwing the blanket into a ball of frustration, he hauled it the hardly impressive few feet across the chamber; it hit the far wall and crumpled in a heap. He wondered how much longer he would be alive if the gryphoness had seen him doing that.

Alive... His thoughts began to drift as he mindlessly set his chamber in order, folding and piling bedding as neatly as possible. Sleep had not come easily the previously night after watching the gryphoness so mercilessly devour the satyr alive - cooked alive. He trembled. The blood on her beak and fire of hunger in her eyes had shown her to be a true beast, if an intelligent one. Why did she have to be so cruel? He nipped the inside of his cheek, sudden guilt bringing a flush to his neck. He was such a fool, a traitor to his fellow males. Why, he had had ample opportunity to free the males in her larder when she was away the night before. She had even told him that she was going out for a flight when she ushered him into 'his' sleeping chamber.

Rubbing his hands over his face, he dug a knuckle into his eye sockets until stars burst behind the closed lids. Oh, he knew why he had not immediately run to release the males, coward that he was. He was just the gryphoness' toy and every day reminded him that she was more than capable of sending him to the same fate, despite her seeming reluctance to devour him quite yet. It was an inescapable fate if he did not do something about it or take the fates of others into his own hands at the very least. Clenching one hand into a fist, chamber tidied, he half-raised it defiantly, though he shivered fearfully.

He would not miss such an opportunity again, regardless of the consequences.

*

The gryphoness lay on her back in the airy entrance chamber with the fire pit, paws and talons in the air, clasping her hapless 'prey' over her stomach. In the few days that had passed since her mating, her belly had developed a slight but noticeable swell as the egg shell formed within her womb. It would take longer for her daughter to form within the shell but protection during her development was essential. Well fed and relaxing close to the crackling fire, she turned the boy over in her grasp, playfully lowering him into her gaping maw, listening to his frightened cries as he surely imagined being devoured. Silly boy!

Curling her fleshy tongue across his abdomen, she teased his hard cock, rumbling at how his body betrayed him under even the slightest stimulation. To feel him trembling against her was a treat indeed and he screwed up his face in the cutest way when she lapped his cheek, leaving a trail of saliva in its wake. She dipped him head first into her beak, the considerably smaller human disappearing up to his hips. The gryphoness giggled at the sight of his legs protruding comically from her beak, twitching but unable to struggle further. He tasted death, toyed with on the brink. She could so easily snap her beak shut and it would be all over for him, knowing no more of the waking world.

His hips pressed flat over her tongue and, so denied for so long, it was difficult for him to keep his body under control, the slimy appendage sliding between his thighs in a rush of sensation that would have otherwise made him moan in ecstasy. Her maw reeked of meat and blood - another male from her larder having met his end - and he squirmed, kicking out even as his shaft throbbed, threatening release. Terrified, he whimpered pitifully and she rumbled with laughter, tongue rubbing over his cock until the poor boy was forced to release, humiliatingly so. He spilled his seed into her maw, which would have been an erotic act if he was not at immediate risk of being devoured. Even his own body was beyond his control and he shook in terror, teeth chattering and hands crushed to his sides as she teased him over and over, continuing her predator's game.

Arianna withdrew the human from her beak, turning him around to close her beak gently over his midsection, almost as if she was 'carrying' him in her beak. The boy whined, squirming so deliciously. Why, his little cock was even hard again! She splayed her wings against the ground, murring at the fire's warmth on her feathers. What better way to spend an afternoon? Squeezing around his waist, she traced a claw over his shaft, feeling his muscles tense and cock respond with a spurt of pre cum, drooling over his own body. She explored his body for an hour or more - the boy lost track of the sun's progress beyond the cave entrance - curious as to how many times she could 'devour' him, forcing him to ejaculate over and over until he had lost count of the pained pleasure too.

Eventually, she bored of her game and held the boy aloft in her claws, studying him. Her toy's breath was rapid, short, fluttering breaths like that of a prey species, and trickles of blood stained his skin where her claws had dug in a little too deeply. Clicking her beak, she almost tenderly lapped away a stronger stream of blood, warmth blossoming in her maw. Oh, she did so adore the taste of fresh blood. Perhaps the boy had more uses than previously realised? He certainly was a versatile toy.

"Boy," she said, addressing him at last. "I am going to be away for some days, visiting my friends from your village, in fact. There are important matters to discuss so I will be leaving you here in my stead. It will not do to take you away right now."

He nodded mutely. What else was he to do or say? He tried not to squirm in her talons

"While I am away, you are to take care of my larder," she continued. "Feed, wash and otherwise tend to the males in there. Also, ensure that my cave is kept neat and tidy while I am away." She licked the edge of her beak. "I may be having visitors upon my return."

Shivering, the boy nodded again, skin prickling. Visitors? Looking after the larder? All those males waiting for death... It did not bear thinking about. What would they think of him caring for them? He could 'see' the hate in their eyes already, begging for some kind of end that was not under the talons of the copper gryphoness. Unimpressed by his silence, the gryphoness nipped his shoulder sharply, startling a pained yelp from his lips; she demanded a reply.

"Answer me."

"Yes, my lady," he answered helplessly, wincing as one of her talons jabbed into his ribs, a spot of blood dripping on to her feathers in a crimson splash.

"That's a good boy."

She stared into his eyes, the corners crinkling softly as if she was smiling in a way that only she as a gryphon could, and pecked him on the cheek. Swallowing a help - it was gentle but hurt - the boy sighed heavily and she crooned up at him, overcome by sudden tenderness. It was a shame he would never quite see her 'tenderness' in the same light.

*

It did not take long for ideas to form once the gryphoness had departed the cave. Sly thoughts crept through corners of his mind, whispering illicit acts that he could not ignore, for he so desperately wanted to listen to them.

With the gryphoness gone, the boy decides that it is a perfect time to free the males. In the larder, he begins undoing the latches, talking soothingly to the males as he thinks that they are afraid of him.

"What's wrong with you?" He growled, flinging the cage door wide. "Go! Leave! What's the matter with you fools?"

In the soft glow of the lantern to his back, a shadow fell across his feet. Uncomprehending, the boy blinked, looking at the shaking males and then to the shadow. Their eyes were fixed on a point over his shoulder. Slowly, fearfully, he turned and gawped. A gryphon with feathers as black as coal and a brown feline hide sat on his launches, tail flicking lazily as his beak parted in a gryphon smile. The boy's legs trembled and he dropped to his knees, death flashing before his eyes. Smaller than his lady gryphon, the black one blinked and studied him; the boy would have sworn that the gryphon appeared smug if he had been better versed in gryphon expressions.

"Now, now," the gryphon murmured silkily. "We would not want Arianna's larder running away now, do we, boy? Such a disappointment." He tutted, clicking his tongue against the inside of his beak. "Arianna will be disappointed in you. Close that cage, boy."

"Who are you?" The boy blurted, shame colouring his cheeks.

How could he have been so stupid? But how could he have known that another gryphon would strut into the cave as if he owned the place? Fumbling, he belatedly swung the cage door closed, twisting his mouth in sympathy at the shivering males, though he was sorrier for himself at that moment in time. Now he was certainly going to be eaten if this gryphon knew his lady gryphoness - he had called her by name. Bristling at the human's slow pace, the black gryphon clacked his beak in displeasure.

"And lock the cage," he snarled. "Are you so incompetent? I would not have thought Arianna would tolerate such insolence. To steal food from her larder!"

"I was not stealing!" He protested. "I was -"

"You may as well have been stealing," the gryphon cut across. "Letting them go deprives Arianna of food. It does not concern me whether you were going to eat them or not."

The boy's lips moved soundlessly. Feathers ruffling, he stalked past the boy, shoving him roughly aside so that he could study the males in the cage. Torn between stopping the gryphon and cowering for his life, the male shook his head, face twisting in conflict.

"What are you doing here? My lady will not... She will not..." He struggled, pounding a clenched fist against the stone cave floor. Damn it!

"Oh, do quiet yourself," the gryphon murmured absently, eyes upon a plump faun that huddled against the back of the cage, fearing the predator's eyes upon him. "Your mistress asked me to watch over her lair. She thought you would try to escape and she was not far wrong now, was she, boy?"

He preened, laughing a gryphon's beak-clacking laugh. Trailing the tip of one talon across the front of the cage, he rattled the metal bars, rejoicing in the cacophony of fearful moans and whimpers: it was truly delicious. Arianna had the best friends in the villages to supply her with such fine larder stock and he would take pleasure in devouring one suitable for his tastes. Not abusing her hospitality, of course. He glanced at the male. The gryphoness' scent was thick in the cavern, rousing erotic memories.

"She also supplied me with permission to take a male from her larder," he fluffed up his feathers importantly. "Which is how I came across you, little human, up to no good as your kind is apt to do."

"Though your kind is good for some," he added, blue eyes glinting wickedly.

Misunderstanding, the boy assumed the gryphon meant that humans were good for food, or male humans at least. He couldn't imagine the gryphon eating a lady and then having to deal with the wrath and strength of many villages alongside his mistress gryphoness. Catlike, the gryphon crouched, tail lashing furiously. The boy tensed and made as if to flee but the gryphon was already upon him, bowling him over backwards in a tangle of flailing limbs, uncaring of where his talons sliced, though he was careful: the boy was Arianna's property. Crying out, the boy fought to break free, arms and hands streaming with bloody rivulets, the metallic scent of blood thick in his nostrils as his nose broke against the hard ground with a bone-shaking crunch. Pinning the male on his stomach, arms flung wide, the gryphon inhaled deeply, nudging the human's bare rump with the curve of his dangerous, grey beak.

"What are you..." A look of horror flitted across the boy's face, words swallowed in a pained gurgle. "D-don't! My lady..."

"Your lady said I could do whatever I please with you," he replied, disinterested. "Try not to scream, it does so aggravate my ears."

Hooking a talon under the male's hips, the gryphon tugged him into position, ignoring the boy's attempts to lower them again - a sharp dig with one's talons did wonders at times. Aroused by the scent of his sweet Arianna, the gryphon's member dropped from its protective sheath; the barbs were slightly raised in his excitement, which was a particular perk of being a gryphon that he was confident the boy beneath him would enjoy soon enough. The gryphoness, after all, had adored her first feel of a barbed cock sliding deep into her cunt, forcing him to mate her over and over. That was a good memory.

There was no point fighting but the boy did so anyway, writhing and clawing at the ground even as the gryphon's talons dug more forcefully into his back, drawing blood. The worst knowledge was the sense that he would live through this rape, forced to endure for his mistress' pleasure. Snarling, the gryphon cemented his point, unwilling to cause lasting damage to the boy by pressing down too hard upon his shoulders, though he was clearly not opposed to some degree of blood-letting. In that, the boy knew that his lady would never allow another gryphon, let alone a male, to kill him. Though, if he had any choice in the matter, he would rather die a quick, clean death.

The gryphon's cock, slimy and hot from its furred sheath, slid over his rump, making the much smaller male shudder, tensing up in anticipation. Was it any great leap from his position and the aroused male at his rear to guess what was going to happen? He hoped for the best but suspected the worst. From the corner of his eye, he flushed crimson, seeing the larder males watching him avidly, fear for their lives averted for the immediate future. The gryphon hissed loudly, digging the drooling tip of his cock into the crack of the boy's raised arse; the boy trembled, a low, pleading whine rolling from his throat in a stream of incomprehensible words, begging to be spared, anything but the oncoming humiliation. The gryphon was not the accommodating sort, much to the human's detriment.

Finding the boy's anus - under the 'tail', as gryphon's called it - the gryphon growled warningly, claws letting the male know very clearly what would happen if he dared move. The boy swallowed hard, mouth suddenly dry and heartbeat pounding in his ears, obnoxiously loud. Did he move and face the talons or did he stay still and face...worse? Wriggling like an eel, the boy sliced his skin further on the gryphon's talons, moaning in pain. Huffing, the gryphon leaned his weight upon the boy's back and forced the first few inches of his cock into the boy's unprotected anus, the screams music to his ears.

The barbs felt like they were tearing the boy apart from the inside, scoring deep lines of burning pain into his passage as the gryphon pulled back those few inches. Thrusting in was little easier, unaccustomed as he was to any sort of penetration back there, and the boy sobbed pitifully, stretched in ways that he was never meant to be. Growling, the gryphon drove in powerfully, bearing down upon the boy's shoulders so that his cheek ground into the dirt, laughing at the males watching every move with wide eyes. The boy tried to scream but there was no breath left in his lungs, only dirt, pain and gasps for breath that didn't come.

"Ah... Nice and tight," the gryphon snarled. "It has been a while since I last had such a tight hole to plough, good and deep." He punctuated his words with sharp thrusts, nearly the full length of his cock spearing into the boy's backside. "Stop your whining, human."

But he could not. He screwed his eyes tight shut, hating that he was still alive. Would being eaten hurt as much? Why was he still alive, sucking in weak breaths? The gryphon hissed, his pleasure open for their avid watchers to see. Surprised that the larder males were so interested in the rape of a fellow larder subject - he was that at least - he wondered if they were perhaps lacking entertainment in there. Then again, food did not need to be entertained: it was only food. Grinding in deep, his balls slapped lightly against the boy's rear, the gryphon letting out a long groan and clacking his beak.

The male was not going anywhere. He was broken. Proud of his accomplishment, the gryphon spread his wings, beating one against the bars of the larder cage - the males shrank back attractively, fear once again shining in their eyes - and ground in deep, raping the boy with wild abandon. Beneath his brutal, ravaging thrusts, the male barely moved, supported only by the gryphon's forepaw under his stomach, raising his hips at the perfect angle for deep thrusts. Blood scented the air, not only from the shallow cuts all over the boy's body, but from a deeper source where the gryphon's cock had torn through his rectum. It did not matter, the gryphon thought viciously, pumping hard as he imagined he was breeding Arianna again, on top this time: the boy would heal and live.

Until then, only his pleasure mattered.

Typical of a male, the gryphon was quick to cum, something that his fuck toy was thankful for later, though he could not find the will to be grateful for anything in such a violated position. Every inch of the boy's body ached with deep-set hurt, heart pounding with such ferocity that he thought it would burst from his chest, leaping through his ribcage with sheer force of will. The gryphon scraped the floor with his hind paws, forepaws lifting off the ground for a moment as he half-reared, raking those barbs through the male's rectum in strong, dominating thrusts, pleasure building and building. He ejaculated with a masculine squawk, thick spurts of seed pouring into the boy's abused behind, leaking out to mingle with blood on the cave floor. Panting harshly, the gryphon shuddered, cock softening and slipping out of the boy, much to the human's relief, though the pain was not so swift to fade.

Shoving the male to the floor, the gryphon left him in a heap on the larder floor, too exhausted even to whimper as pain laced his entire body. His anal ring gaped, red and sore, though thankfully not bleeding, despite the boy thinking the scratches - caused by those accursed barbs - would never truly heal, forever burning inside. He could not imagine relieving himself and his limp cock bumped lightly against the top of his thigh as he rolled on to his side, not aroused at all, regardless of the sex. It was strange considering that pleasing the gryphoness aroused him and he had pleasured males before...just not like that. Chuckling under his breath, the gryphon pushed the boy's hip with his beak, making him crawl away, evidently fearing another ravaging. The gryphon shook his head, cock already growing hard and eager again.

"We're not done yet, boy."

Over the days leading up to the gryphoness' return, the gryphon used the boy repeatedly, uncaring for how he whimpered, cowering away the swipe of his talons. If he was not using Arianna's toy, the gryphon would have been even rougher, but he was ever conscious about causing permanent damage to her toy. He would not dare face her wrath if he _did_injure the boy. So the drake took his pleasure from the boy's mouth, raping him just as brutally until he gagged, choking on his barbed length. The boy coughed up cum after almost every throat-fuck and his rear was not safe regardless of the gryphon's care to not hurt him too badly. Hard pressed to rest with the gryphon's looming threat around every corner, the male grew haggard, dark shadows forming under his eyes before relief and doom arrived in equal quarters.

The gryphoness stalked into her lair in a clatter of claws on stone, tail-tip twitching: ah, it was good to be home! Her meeting with her friends from the village had gone well and they had been delighted to hear that she was expecting a daughter, as she had known they would be. She stopped dead in her tracks, observing Drest sitting on his haunches beside the fire fit, warming his hide. The smug look in his eyes, the scent of sex and her male sitting his head lowered in the corner of the cave did not bode well. Drest clicked his beak in welcome.

"My lady Arianna," the gryphon bowed his head formally.

"Leave," she said coldly, the state of her toy telling her all she needed to know. "I have no need of you now."

"But, Arianna -"

"Leave," she sighed, wings drooping as the sheen in her orange eyes seemed to dull. "Come back at nightfall. We have some to discuss."

Drest did not need to be told a third time. Dipping his beak sadly - she was not one to contest in a foul mood, or contest at all - he fluttered a wing-tip in farewell, trotting from the cave and taking to the air in a rapid beating of wings. Left alone with her boy, the gryphoness studied him, flames crackling in the fire pit. He refused to raise his head, knees drawn up to his chest and arms wrapped around them. Covered in half-healed scratches, he reeked of blood, dirt and cum. If she had not instinctively known that her toy had done wrong by her, she might have felt sympathetic for him.

"I'm disappointed in you," she said at last, a breathy sigh escaping her beak. "Tell me what happened."

He shook his head, forehead pressed to his knees. Aggravated, she stalked over to him, towering above the boy, though it was not difficult for her to do; she was naturally intimidating. Peering up at her, the boy was struck by the difference in size between the black gryphon and his lady. Arianna bristled, extending the claws on her hind paws.

"Do not make me repeat myself, boy," her eyes narrowed. "My patience wears thin."

He gulped.

"I went to the larder on the first day you were away to release the males." His voice trembled. "When I went into the larder, the gryphon stopped me from setting them loose. He... The gryphon took me..." Arianna rolled her eyes, huffing loudly.

"I do not care about that."

Flinching, the boy continued.

"The male gryphon ensured that the males in your larder were secure and I continued to care for them while you were away, my lady," he finished, voice trembling. "That is all, mistress, I swear on my life."

Her silence told him just what his life was worth to her. Lowering her head, she forced him to look her in the eye, her head tilted to one side so that she could stare at him directly; the large orb was unwaveringly unblinking. He quailed against the unyielding cave wall, truly caught between a rock and a hard place.

"If you had been loyal to me," she said. "I would have kept you around. That was what I went to speak to my friends about."

His heart sank and he dug his fingers into the palm of his hand, nails leaving crescent moon shapes carved into his palm. What had he done?

"Of course, I told my friends that I was preparing to lay an egg too," she added, startling him. She had not told him that she was expecting; likely she had not seen fit to do so, he told himself bitterly. "I negotiated your survival so that you may continue to serve me. But I don't think I want you around anymore for that." Her orange eyes dimmed sadly. "I cannot trust you."

"I cannot blame you for trying, boy," she sighed, padding to the fire pit where she stretched out, letting the flames raise flickers of warmth to her hide once more. "Yet you failed my test. You're back on the menu."

It was what he had expected but he kicked himself mentally. Now there was no escape from one of her horrible, vile, torturous deaths. She adored meat roasted alive - that would be his likely fate. He shuddered: would it hurt more than being raped? Watching his thoughts flit across his face as clear as day, the gryphoness stretched out, nudging her talons closer to the fire where she flicked a scrap of kindling into a leaping flame.

"However," she clicked her tongue against the interior of her beak. "I do have another proposal for you. I think it is something quite fitting for you. Though it is a shame I had to come up with an alternate use for you. I shall miss using you for my pleasure."

"Though you do not deserve it," she noted pointedly. "I have decided to allow you the honour of being my daughter's first meal."

He blinked, hearing only 'daughter' and 'meal'. Yes, she was going to lay an egg, which he assumed would birth a female hatchling, judging from her word choice. It was confusing. Eyes watering, he looked down respectfully.

"A...question, my lady?" He asked cautiously, understanding that the answer would be anything but good.

"You may ask."

"What does that entail, my lady?" He said slowly. "How... How will it occur?"

"I will feed you to my daughter piece by piece, of course," she said as if it was the simplest thing in the world. "The first prey of any gryphon is very important as the prey becomes an innate part of them. This way, I may keep a part of you alive in the world, at one with my daughter."

"How is that good for me if I will die anyway?" He said bitterly, studying the curve of a brown scratch running down his calf; he had nothing more to lose than his life if his fate was already sealed.

"Your body will be no more, boy, but do not take this gift lightly," she snapped. "I may still roast you over my fire."

She reached for the spit threateningly and he immediately quieted. Feeling a flash of sympathy for the human, she shook her beak slowly, though her expression remained as ambiguous as ever; not a soul could ever truly discern what a gryphon was thinking.

"Oh, one more thing," she murmured, eyes lighting up. "For my daughter's pleasure, you are no longer allowed to climax at any time. Not until my daughter is hatched, that is. This is one way in which I will ensure that you are perfectly prepared to be her first meal."

He resisted the urge to shrug - she was the cause of his ejaculations anyway - shocked at the lapse in his obedience. The thought of such an insolent behaviour would never have crossed his mind before but, after his treatment at the talons of her gryphon friend, he was enjoying his hold on life less and less. At least it would all be over soon. Even if it would be over in a painful fashion...no: he could not think about that. It was better to live in the present than the future, while his past no longer mattered. Glancing at the gryphoness, he dumbly nodded his assent and acceptance of her order. She ruffled, craning her neck to preen proudly, copper feathers gleaming in the fire light.

"I do not think I have to remind you of what will happen if you disobey my orders, reaching orgasm in any manner until that time comes, boy."

She glanced meaningfully towards the roasting pit and he swallowed hard. He understood perfectly so.

*

"Let me go!"

"Oh, quiet, faun," Drest grumbled, tail twitching in a classic display of feline annoyance. "I have had enough of your complaints and your squirms make it hard to tighten the ropes. Do stay still."

"He's a fighter, isn't he?" The gryphoness chuckled, chest rumbling with laughter. "I do like it when my meat has a bit of a kick to it."

Two nights later, Arianna invited Drest back for what she told her boy was a 'romantic' meal. Drest had caught a faun on the mountain slopes and carried him kicking and squalling back to the lair where the pair of gryphons had been hard pressed to restrain him properly. With his arms bound to his sides with a ragged length of rope and ankles lashed tightly together, he kicked out with cloven hooves. Though he bucked furiously, he hardly moved a few inches, squirming so that dirt sullied the brown fur covering his body from the hips down, tanned torso boasting good health. He had indeed been a fine catch for the gryphon, something that he had hoped would appease the gryphoness, as much as she could be appeased, that is. The boy sat crouched with his back to the rear wall of the cave, feet grey with dust; soon the gryphoness would drag him to the river for another bath, dunking him in the cold water.

Rolling the faun over, the gryphon pushed him on to his front, bringing his beak to both of his fine antlers in turn. Rocking, the faun arched viciously, small tail flicking to reveal a splash of white, fingers struggling to grasp at the ropes, but it was already too late. A resounding crack echoed through the lair as they were snapped off and the faun howled in anger, tears streaming down his face.

"Damn you!" He screamed. "You monsters!"

"Oh, shush," the gryphoness flicked her tail absently. "You were not using them anyway."

Irritated at their meal - the gryphon did not like food with as much spark as the gryphoness preferred - the gryphon pinned him down and grabbed the spit in his nimble talons. Pressing the spike beneath the faun's tail, the gryphon neatly impaled him on the spit, applying pressure until the spike protruded from the faun's mouth in a dribble of blood. The faun writhed, pain shining in his dark brown eyes, all sense of hope fading. Pleased at how smoothly the gryphon prepared her meal - it was so nice to have someone cook for her - the gryphoness crooned, licking her beak hungrily. The male fluffed up his feathers importantly, laid the spit across the forked supports and began to turn it, listening carefully to the squeals of the faun as his skin turned red.

"Boy," the gryphoness ordered; he lifted his head, eyes blank with pain as the faun gurgled pitifully. "Take over. Turn the spit."

Sick to the pit of his stomach, the boy rose slowly to his feet, giving the gryphon a wide berth as he approached the pit. The gryphon cast him a disparaging glance, stalking back to Arianna's side as the boy was forced to take over, not daring to disobey his lady. He hoped his eyes spoke enough apologies, but the faun was too wrapped up in his own world of burning pain to notice, twitching upon the spit. Blood dripped into the flames as he moaned and the boy turned the spit slowly, hands shaking so badly that he had to use both of them, ashamed of his own incompetence.

Content to leave him to the turning of the spit, the gryphoness beckoned Drest to side, stretching out comfortably with her hind legs curled beneath her body in the feline fashion. The gryphon sat on his haunches behind her right shoulder, tenderly grooming her feathers and settling them comfortably against her skin. He brushed aside a small pile of loose feathers and stroked a talon over her back, making her arch into his touch as he teased down her spin. Gulping tearfully, the boy did not see any of this, his eyes clouded with tears as he struggled with the spit, turning it awkwardly as the faun's weight pulled it to the side. He jerked and the spit rattled upon the supports, a thick spattering of blood sizzling amongst the flames. So disturbed, the gryphoness' head snapped up and her eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Make sure he is cooked evenly!" She growled. "You are useless. Come here and please me instead, that's all you're good for right now."

The boy dropped the spit with a clatter, wincing in sympathy towards the faun's low groan, and dashed to her side, skidding to a half when he saw that the gryphon had not moved a muscle. Studying the human, the gryphon roses slowly to his paws and returned to his task of cooking the meat just the way Arianna liked it; his opinion of the boy had not improved in the slightest, though he considered the toy amusing to fuck. He might have to catch his own human to act as his own toy. Well, until he became bored at least.

Innocent to the gryphon's thoughts, the boy folded to his knees at the gryphoness' rump, stroking over her tawny hide, innately comforted by the texture of her fur. His tongue darted into her folds, lapping along the puffy lips as she hissed in pleasure, the boy able to play her body like a finely tuned instrument. As he pleased her to the course of several orgasms, he tried to imagine he was back in his village and not shuddering at the dying faun's grunt, another one that he could not save. When he worked in the village stables, he had sometimes heard music drifting from the festivals and celebrations the ladies held. Though he never knew what they were celebrating, he felt that he would miss music the most and the way it thrummed through ever corner of one's life, sound undiscerning as to gender or species. Sighing against her sex, the boy trembled, the crack of bones and sloppy crunch of meat between two powerful beaks telling him all he needed to know about the faun's untimely demise. Through their shared feats, he kept licking and licking, losing himself in the action until he thought no more.

*

Arianna proudly laid a sky-blue egg, dotted with brown freckles, four days after she had sent the gryphon away for good. She tired of his presence and it was never necessary to keep a male around after he had fulfilled his purpose with her. Chasing her boy to build a comfortable nest of twigs, leaves, bracken and, of course, the most comfortable of blankets from her lair, she turned it over with a talon, crooning quietly to her daughter curled within the pale shell. The boy was distraught to learn that he was to sleep with the egg, sharing his body heat with the hatchling within, and tried to protest - it was barbaric! - though the gryphoness, of course, cared nothing for his opinion.

The first night he had to sleep with the egg, the boy tossed and turned, unable to find a comfortable position around the hard shell. It had to be pressed to his bare skin, otherwise his lady swore it would become cold too quickly if he fell asleep without his body eat to share. It could be wrapped in blankets for short periods of time and retain warmth but Arianna feared her daughter would not survive the night chill if challenged too greatly. Young gryphons were tough, ferocious hatchlings, but she already faced a mother's worry when there was little danger for her daughter to face in her world.

With her fears ringing in his ears, the boy was sorely tempted to leave the egg to become cold. The hatchling, to his knowledge, would die and he would be 'free' to end his life in a manner of his choosing. Considering the gryphoness' fury, he assumed he would be due a quick, rage-fuelled death at the bare minimum, which would be several times better than being fed scrap by scarp to the chick. When the moment came that he could have rolled away from the egg, left it to chill, his muscles refused to respond and he cursed himself mentally. His sense of duty was too deeply instilled and she had ordered him to keep the egg warm. Sighing heavily, the male covered the egg with a fold of blanket, which was as green and rich as downy moss, curled around the smooth shell and drifted into an uneven sleep.

His dreams were troubled, more so than was the norm for the boy. Rolling from side to side, he frowned in sleep and hugged the egg to his chest. A gryphon with sharp, blue eyes chased him through his dreams raping him again and again while a ferocious hatchling roared, tearing at his face and scoring deep rents in his flesh until he was no longer recognisable. He whimpered, slipping into another dream where pain speared through him and the world spun slowly, realising that he was on a spit and being cooked alive, his life blood draining into the fire while the gryhponess watched, laughing.

Shocked into wakefulness, the human started, egg cradled against his stomach. He trembled fearfully, the dreams seeming to hold more substance than reality in the moment between the waking and sleeping worlds. To even his own surprise, he quickly padded the egg amongst the blankets and dashed to the gryphoness' sleeping chamber, crawling under her tail and pouring attention upon her sex. She murmured sleepily, brushing a wing over his head, and groaned, letting him bring her to two orgasms before she sent him back to warm the egg, her thoughts ever upon her hatchling. Dually satisfied and shivers banished, the male retreated to the egg chamber, dropping a tired kiss upon the shell. He chanced that the chick pecked the inside, but it was likely his imagination.

As the dreams continued over subsequent nights, he made it a nightly habit to run to the gryphoness for comfort whenever struck by a nightmare, lapping her sex until she was satisfied and sent him away. Only then could he sleep soundly, undisturbed for a short time. Days were little different, everything concerning preparing his body for the chick's first meal. The gryphoness sourced out delectable herbs that she said would make his diet and, he shuddered at the thought, his semen tastier for the hatchling. He learned more about gryphon youngsters than he cared to in the weeks leading up to the hatching, at which the women from his village will be attending. There was little better than a happy audience to watch one's death, after all.

His reservations were fair but he could not help but be comforted by what the gryphoness said previously about his upcoming 'transformation', as she called it. The thought of death hung over him like a dark cloud, cliché yet ever present whenever he tidied the nest or warmed the egg, his diet leaving an aftertaste in his mouth. He could never forget. He was human. He did not want to die any more than he did when he had first been presented to the gryphoness as tribute, so he clung to the thought that a part of him would survive, somehow, with the chick.

It was the last hope he had.

*

"Be brave, boy," the gryphoness said, washing her toy carefully with a damp cloth; on such an important day, she did not trust him to clean himself. Everything had to be perfect.

The human stood silently, knee deep in the enormous, wooden wash tub that the ladies had supplied from the village. The gryphoness' daughter had hatched earlier that morning and was resting in the nest, watched by an eager crowd of ladies from his village, who had hardly behaved as if they recognised him. He supposed it was to be expected. They had brought more gifts for the gryphoness and her daughter, some living and some made by the hands of women, carefully crafted to bring pleasure to both mother and daughter. Her larder stock would not run low for many, many moons.

"Be proud of your end," she added, drawing him back to the present. "It is a better one than most males, like you, could hope for."

He disagreed, though did not voice his opinion. What was the need? Satisfied with his cleanliness, the gryphoness tossed a towel at him, hasty in her desire to return to her daughter with her first meal. The little hatchling had been so tired by her struggle to break from the egg! And she looked just like her mother. Arianna puffed up her feathers proudly, near strutting around the lair, a happy flick to her tail. While the boy clambered from the tub, drying himself roughly with the coarse cloth, she fetched a small wooden bowl full of herbs and some manner of berries that the male had never laid eyes upon before. She laid it expectantly before him.

"Eat these," she nudged the bowl towards him with a talon as he eyed the herbs within suspiciously.

"What are they for...my lady?" He was slow to add the respectful note at the end, having nothing left to lose with life already forfeit. She twitched.

"They'll make you numb," she said simply. "You'll feel less pain. Eat now."

Surprised at her kindness, perhaps brought on by the presence of her daughter, the boy wolfed the herbs down, noting a twinge of sadness: they were not much of a last meal. The gryphoness paced impatiently until the herbal 'drugs' took effect and the boy swayed unsteadily, grasping the cave wall for support. It would have sounded ridiculous to say before, but the combination of herbs made him feel as if he was floating - it was even difficult to fully sense the feel of his feet on the ground. The gryphoness' eyes shone and she cupped a wing around his back, ensuring that he would not topple over; it would have been a shame for him to so sully himself after she had gone to the effort of cleaning him especially.

Leading him into the cosy nesting chamber, the hatchling bounced excitedly, squawking as the boy was laid down in the nest, hazy to his surroundings. Everything seemed to be happening in a slow motion blur and the boy lifted his hands, staring at his fingers as if seeing them for the very first time. Hands were strange-looking things, he decided. Too eager, the copper-feathered hatchling with blue eyes leapt into the air, pounced his leg and scoring a nip that he saw rather than felt. Clicking her tongue against the roof of her beak, the gryphoness hooked a paw under the hatchling's stomach and dumped her back in the nest as the women giggled. The boy could not see what was so funny, but words drifted through the fog as if from a great distance away. They thought the baby was adorable. Should he think that too?

The gryphoness felt no need to testify that her chick was ready to feed, given her eagerness - some were exceptionally picky, or so she had heard - so she proceeded by dipping her beak down to the human's genitals. If he had been lucid, he would have shrunk back, but, as it was, he watched blandly as the gryphoness' beak closed over his genitals and pulled. There was a moment of resistance where the sharp edge of her beak worried the flesh, and his hips lifted up from the nest. Barely feeling anything, he felt obligated to let loose a moan of mild discomfort, watching as if from a distance as she tugged hard, ripping his genitals clean off in a smear of blood. Soft cock and balls dangling from her beak, she offered them to the chick as the women cooed appreciatively, seemingly uncaring for the male's wellbeing. Did they simply see him as 'meat' too?

The chick chirped and leapt for the offered meat, grasping and tugging as her mother refused to let her have the whole treat at once. Pinning the torn off genitalia down with one talon, she grasped and ripped off a bite size piece that her daughter snatched eagerly from her beak, gulping it down and looking for more. After feeding her a couple more morsels in a similar fashion, the gryphoness held out the remaining shreds and balls to the hatchling, allowing her to grab it in her beak but refusing to let go. Teaching the chick how to feed, the hatchling growled in a mock tug of war before managing to rip off a chunk of flesh, tearing open the male's testicles as she tumbled backwards. Hissing as if surprised, she fluffed up her feathers at the giggling women and ripped the rest of her meal from her mother's beak with a deal more dignity, pulling off as much flesh as she could manage. When the genitals had been consumed, she lapped up spilled semen from the boy's own body, purring like a kitten.

With the biggest step taken, the gryphoness ripped away strips of flesh for her daughter to feast upon, letting her have one after another to sate her first hunger. Halfway through her meal, the hatchling sat back on her rump, burping innocently as the women giggled, voicing their delight. The proud mother fluttered her wing-tips approvingly, blood staining her beak. The boy hardly felt a thing, though he was aware of losing greater and greater amounts of blood, the metallic scent all around, reminding him of the bloody scratches during his brutal rapes. It was okay: it would soon be over. Only feeding her daughter the choicest slices of meat, the gryphoness inhaled deeply, drawing upon words that had been spoken to her in a different fashion upon her first feeding.

"From one to another," the gryphoness intoned softly, watching as her human faded, "and another to one. Let your body become sustenance for dear Cerys, my daughter, as your mind moves on. Become more than you were. Let yourself go, boy."

The women murmured in approval, not understanding the ceremony itself but seeing its importance in the shine of the gryphoness' eyes. Still, they saw it as an honour for one of their tributes to be the hatchling's first meal; what other village could claim the same?

"Isn't she adorable?" One woman whispered.

"Her feathers - so beautiful!"

"Just like her mother."

"She feeds well."

"To think - one of our boys!"

Though he could hear them, the boy made little to no sense of the words, rolling his head weakly from side to side as his skin twitched, seeming to crawl with a thousand insects. What was happening? Oh, yes, he knew...he was dying, but it was difficult to understand in the slow moments of slipping further and further away. Vision fading to grey, the boy paced closer to unconsciousness, light pain burning through him, though everything dulled with time. His skin itched even more and, unbelievably, he 'saw' himself lying in the nest, a mess of blood and flesh, the gryphoness leaning down over him.

"You're doing so well," she whispered to the boy, her beak very close to his ear. "No screaming, no blubbering... You surpass my highest expectations. Farewell to this form, boy."

He understood at last. No longer was he the boy anymore, the gryphoness' toy or just another one of the village boys, set to serve. He became something more than what he was, energy thrumming through his veins as he pounced, beak tearing at strips of meat, giggles ringing in his ears. The women around found something funny in his actions and he heard the gryphoness say something about having to finish off the carcass. What did that mean? So strange. He did not care why they were laughing, intent only upon the feast before him. Belly swollen with meat, the form he drifted within leapt without his consent, gorging as a tail flicked back and forth against his legs. He finally understood what the gryphoness meant, though only time would tell whether it was positive or negative. His old life was behind him now, eyes closed and the touch of feathers soft upon his cheek. Darkness enveloped his human form.

And he knew no more.