Advent Day Nine

Summary: Set after Avengers: Endgame. Fluff and stuff leading up to Christmas.
Warning(s): Explicit. Disciplinary and erotic spanking; Heavy Domination/submission; sexual situations; dub/non-con (consent after the fact/reluctant agreement); violence and mentions of violence; AU

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After a night of decorating fun and a full nights' rest, the day had gone by very quickly. Katie had stuck to Namor like glue, just as she had every day and night since he had grounded her. Everyone had eaten dinner and was breaking off to do their own evening activities. A small group was forming in the recreational room, but Namor had been asked by Blade to 'spar' with him in the gym. Katie watched everyone going to the recreational room longingly. She wanted to join in the games. She wasn't really in the mood to spar (even if she could always use the practice). Sighing silently, she turned to follow her mate to the gym. She wasn't allowed out of his sight yet, after all, and she wasn't about to argue with him about the punishment. She wasn't that desperate to join the others.

Namor could feel the desire from Katie to join the others and he paused, moving over to his mate's side. "It's been a week...and I'm willing to believe you've learned your lesson," he said quietly. "You can join the others for a game. If you'd like."

Spiders had quietly gone to accompany his mate as well, considering that he too was grounded. He wasn't that worried about joining the others...not in the same way Katie was. After all, he tended to keep to himself even now, when he'd got a body back and was no longer a monster.

Katie's eyes widened and she threw her arms around Namor in a tight hug, kissing him on the cheek. "Thank you, thank you, thank you...." She bounced in place, unable to hide her excited exuberance. She kissed him again, then grabbed Spiders' hand, intending to drag him to the recreational room with her, before pausing. He hadn't been given permission yet and she didn't want to get him into trouble.

Blade chuckled at the young woman's excitement and nodded at Spiders. "You can go too. Grounding is officially over."

Squealing, Katie started tugging Spiders toward the rec room. "I think they're going to play a game!"

Spiders let her drag him towards the rec room, not protesting or arguing. He might still be a bit uncomfortable around a larger crowd of people in the base, but he was willing to join Katie if it made her happy.

Katie immediately looked around the room as she and Spiders entered, finding a nearby couch and pulling him toward it, sitting down and then looking around with a big smile. "What are we doing?" she asked.

"We're mainly just talking," Dane said, with his own smile. "We might play Truth or Dare... or Truth or Truth... but we wanted to give the newest members of the compound a chance to ask questions and learn more about everything, so...."

"Does anyone have any questions?" Spiders glanced at all of the newcomers.

"Yeah. I do. What's with you all sticking like glue to your mate? And calling it a grounding?" Cassie asked curiously. "I mean... I know that the bond tends to encourage dominance and submission, and it varies how strong that is depending on those who bonded, but... why? If I want to be with Lyja, I just hang with her. I don't pretend I'm being punished... since it obviously wasn't a punishment. You both liked it too much." She sounded confused.

"I don't think it's necessarily the grounding that I like." Spiders sounded a bit awkward, because he hadn't been expecting this kind of question. "It's more having rules and boundaries...someone who actually cares enough to make sure you stay safe and don't do something stupid that will get you killed."

Cooper blinked. "So... It really was a punishment? You weren't just calling it that to tease your bond mate?"

"Yep. I was really grounded!" Katie admitted. "But I think Namor only did it cuz he knew I needed his stability to keep from doing something stupid again. Which I was happy he'd help me that way because I hated getting spanked, and if he didn't help me and I did something stupid again, that's what I woulda gotten and prolly harder than it was this time..." She started rambling as she thought about what could have happened if she did something dangerous again.

Eddie's eyes widened. "Namor spanked you?" he spluttered. "And not the fun kind?!"

Katie wrinkled her nose. "Gwen always wanted to see him spank me for fun and he never would. And now I'm glad he never did, cuz I don't think it is fun at all! Dunno why she thought it would be..." she muttered to herself.

Eddie blushed, the other woman's seeming innocence on the matter making him realize belatedly that he needed to be careful what he said to her.

Spiders glanced sideways at Katie, but didn't comment on the words she was saying. He'd been a virgin before mating with Blade, but hardly innocent. "It's like I said. Rules and boundaries." He shrugged. "It's not like those kinds of relationships were unheard of even before Ultimus took over. At least, they weren't in my dimension."

Eddie blinked. "Well .. I guess not. I never thought of Ds relationships as being more than sexual before the bond, though...." He got a thoughtful and slightly worried look on his face.

What's worrying you? Charles asked his mate, using the mental speech in case Eddie didn't want to admit what he was thinking out loud.

I guess... Even though I knew that spanking, groundings and other punishments were used for discipline in the bonds here... I didn't believe it? If that makes sense. And now... Realizing I should believe it... Guess makes the possibility I'll end up in trouble like that more real. I dunno. Eddie thought ruefully.

I thnk they are only used in relationships where those involved have discussed and agreed that it is appropriate, Charles said. It doesn't seem like all, or even most, of them here use those kinds of methods.

I... I guess it's more that I thought they weren't really serious. I don't know why I thought that, Eddie thought feeling a bit foolish. Although it's clear I wasn't the only one who thought it was an elaborate prank.

"So... Uh... How did you all decide that was going to be a thing? If you don't mind answering..." Cassie said.

Kate thought about it. "I don't think the punishment factor itself was ever directly discussed ahead of time. It was just decided by our Dom that dangerous and irresponsible behavior would result in a punishment and if it was serious enough that would be a spanking."

So much for the idea they agreed ahead of time... Eddie thought, with an amused inner snort.

"I think it was implied and accepted, though... When we talked about if we wanted to have a Ds relationship, or if we wanted something less involved... Since the bond allows things to develop however they need to," Dane said hesitantly. "Since Cap was upfront about what was and wasn't allowed and how he dealt with it, those of us who went with the Ds connection knew what would happen, even if we didn't ever directly talk about it before it actually happened."

Druig slanted his head, looking pensive. "Does it really? Does the bond really adjust to what the couple needs? We thought it did... Because Tony and Mordo, Phastos and Ross, Bruce and Clint... were completely celibate and platonic after the initial bonding. But then... As soon as they found their missing partners and were able to bond with them, suddenly, they aren't celibate and platonic. It was less that the bond adjusted and more that it was waiting for the missing piece."

Katie nodded, her eyes suddenly reflecting her centuries old age instead of the usual childish innocence normal to her gaze. "I think it adjusts to what is needed, but not the way everyone assumed. Everyone thought it adjusted to if it would be platonic or sexual, and if it would be Ds or not. All the relationships have eventually turned sexual and all of them are fully Ds. The only adjustment is the level and type of Ds involved. Even in couples that don't punish reckless behavior, there is still one who is clearly in charge. They just tend to show it by taking care of their mates." She didn't elaborate on her and Namor. They already knew he punished her and it was obvious he took care of her; she knew she needed taking care of. She wouldn't divulge anything else if he wasn't here to agree to divulging, even if her nature was to expose everything to get reactions. She was trying to change that about herself.

"I don't agree that the bond turns every relationship into D/s...even if it does eventually turn sexual," Pietro said. He indicated himself, Druig and Makkari. "We've switched off dominance. No one person is in charge all the time. And no one person is submissive all the time. Do we take care of each other? Yes. But there's no aspect of dominance to it."

Makkari nodded her own agreement. Perhaps the bond just amplifies those tendencies that were already there, she signed.

"The bond does bring forth feelings that weren't already there." Peter-Andrew had a slightly pensive look on his face. "But I think it does amplify rather than just create feelings that weren't there before."

"But that's exactly what Katie was saying," Matt protested. "That all the relationships are Ds... just at varying levels. Just because you don't have one set individual in charge all the time, doesn't mean it isn't Ds, because you switch. You all take turns being in charge or following.  As a lifestyle, you do still have Ds involved. Just not all the time."

Yelena nodded. "I can confirm that the bond has encouraged various different levels and types of Ds in some cases. For all of us. My relationship is likely one of the mildest versions there is, because of my history, but it is still there. If there is a question of what will be done, I will follow Reed's decision. He is in charge ultimately. But before he makes his decision, he knows exactly what it is I want to do and why. I suppose some would claim that isn't truly Ds and that the bond adjusted so that we wouldn't have a Ds relationship. But it really depends on one's definition of what makes a relationship Ds."

"In that case, maybe you could say that a lot of relationships before Ultimus took over had elements of Ds in them," Ikaris commented. "A lot of the time, even in relationships where there's no real dominance or submission involved, one person would take the lead and another would follow. It might switch, depending on who might be better placed to make a decision...and it wouldn't necessarily be the case in all relationships. But I've lived for a very long time and I've seen that kind of interaction even in relationships between people who wouldn't consider themselves to be in a Ds type of relationship."

"Possibly. But we are talking about what the bond is doing. And none of our relationships in this compound, right at this instant, are in a relationship with our bondmate that is normal vanilla. To say that it isn't a Ds relationship because they switch off... When we've seen them participating in a very Ds type of behavior feels a bit discordant..." Kate shrugged.

"I wouldn't call my relationship Ds." Wanda spoke up, a thoughtful look on her face. "Yes, I took control when we bonded initially, because it was what was required for the bond. But neither of us have taken an active role in taking charge of the other."

Kate slanted her head at that and nodded slightly. "Point. I haven't really seen you and Okoye interact that much at all, to be honest. If we didn't know, we could believe you weren't bonded. But that is an example of the bond turning into what is needed, I suppose. I don't believe it is only amplification, though. I never felt submissive, or wanted to be submissive, before Norman."

"Maybe." Peter-Andrew shrugged. "I kind of...broke the surface when the bonding was occurring, though. And I made the decision to submit before the bond actually took hold. So in my case, I think it amplified feelings that were already there. But obviously, everyone has different feelings about it. There's probably no way to be certain unless the bonds can be broken and then it might be possible to see if the feelings are still there or not."

"Yeah. Kinda hard to test that idea, when you are the only one with that unique situation. From what I was told, anyone who wasn't first released by Druig's ability- and therefore able to consent ahead of time- didn't have the ability to consent until after the fact. Except for you, of course," Colleen pointed out.

"I don't think it is something we will ever truly know the answer to," Sif determined. "For every individual here who insists the bond isn't encouraging anything, there is another who states that they never had inclinations to dominate or submit until after the bond. And then there are those of us who don't think it really matters, as long as we are happy and safe." She smirked.

"One thing I am certain of," Lincoln said. "I don't want to find out how much is the bond pushing, or how much is me being free to accept feelings I already had, if the only way to find out is breaking the bond. The thought of breaking the bond makes me physically ill."

Nebula nodded in agreement. "It is a very uncomfortable feeling. And for me, the bond has been beneficial. Helpful." It meant she wasn't alone anymore...although she didn't say those words outright.

Katie nodded. "I don't want to go back to being alone..." she said, in a small voice.

After that statement, everyone went quiet, thinking through their own thoughts and feelings about the bond. It didn't take long before everyone began filtering out of the rec room, heading to bed and bringing an end to day nine.