Mutual Bonding

Summary: Follows on from The Spirit Guardian. Grant calls Ray late for help. Trouble ensues
Warning(s): Spanking; spoilers for the two movies and one television series; AU; references to violence and murder
Pairings: Walter Crow Horse/Ray Levoi; Martin/Grant/Paul; Dorian Hook/Anubis

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It was two in the morning.

Ray knew that, because he glanced at his clock on the bedside table as his phone went off. Then, he reached out and picked up the phone, placing it to his ear. “Ray Levoi speaking.” He kept his voice low, not wanting to risk waking up Walter.

His husband had his arms wrapped around Ray’s waist. The action was possessive and comforting and he found himself snuggling back into Walter’s chest as he held the phone to his ear.

“Ray? It’s Grant.” The voice on the other end on the phone was slurring the words.

Ray frowned and sat up slightly. “Grant? Where are you?”

“At a bar,” came the slurred response. “I think it’s….” His voice ‘travelled’ a little way away and Ray could hear him ask, “Hey, An, where exactly are we?”

“An?” Ray repeated, confused. He carefully slipped out of bed, casting a glance back at his husband.

Walter hadn’t stirred. His eyes were still closed and he was still deeply asleep, his breathing slow and even. Ray thought about waking his husband, just to let Walter know where he was going…but decided against it. After all of the excitement of dealing with and breaking the curse, he figured the least he could do was let the man he loved rest.

“Anubis,” Grant answered, his voice sounding much clearer now. “We’re at this address.” He told Ray where it was.

Tucking the phone between his ear and his shoulder, Ray pulled his pants on and then his shoes, before grabbing his shirt and pulling it on. “Anubis is with you? Where’s Martin? Dorian? Is Paul with you too?”

“No-o.” Grant gave the response slowly, almost hesitantly. “Martin doesn’t know I’m here. And Dr. Hook doesn’t know about Anubis, either,” he admitted quietly. “I just…needed to let off some steam. And Anubis found me and refused to leave me alone. And I don’t want to call Martin, because I don’t want to disappoint him.”

“Okay. I’ll be there soon. Don’t move.” Ray disconnected the call and then turned to his still-sleeping husband. Grant’s words played in his mind and he knew that if he left without waking Walter first, if he didn’t at least tell his husband where he was going, Walter would be disappointed in him. And the disappointment always hurt worse than the spanking; and those were painful enough.

Walking over to the bed, Ray leaned over and kissed Walter; a firm press of lips.

“Mmm.” His husband stirred, eyes opening, He reached out and stroked Ray’s cheek; pulling him in close for another, deeper kiss. Then, he pulled back slightly and let his eyes sweep over Ray’s body before he frowned. “Why are you dressed?”

“Grant called me,” Ray answered. “He and Anubis are at a bar. They haven’t told Martin or Dorian where they are. Paul isn’t with them either.” He hesitated. “I was going to just go and pick them up, but then I thought that if I left without saying anything to you, you’d be disappointed. And I’d be in trouble too.”

Walter sat up and pulled Ray into a tight embrace, before kissing him so deeply, Ray felt his toes curl. He opened up for the kiss and let out a slight whimper. When his husband pulled back, he licked his lips and looked into Walter’s eyes. “I’m glad I woke you up and told you,” he whispered. “I’d rather be kissed like that than have you pissed at me and spanking me,” he admitted.

“I’m proud of you for telling me, Ray.” Walter stroked the side of his face and then got out of bed. “You absolutely did the right thing. But there’s another thing we need to do too.”

“I know.” Ray winced. “I don’t want to call them myself, though. I feel bad that I’ll be getting them into trouble.”

“You won’t be getting them into trouble,” Water replied. “What’s the address?” He got out of bed and began pulling on clothes.

Ray told him the address and couldn’t help but watch as his husband pulled on his clothes. He felt himself stirring at the sight of his husband half naked and walked into Walter’s arms, giving him a tight hug and then kissing his lips. “Maybe, when we come home, we could do something other than sleep?” he suggested.

Walter gave a soft chuckle and wrapped his arms around Ray’s waist, giving him another toe-curling kiss before releasing him. “Go and get the car warmed up,” he directed. “I’ll call Martin and Dorian and then come and call you.”

“Okay.” Ray ran his tongue over his bottom lip, tasting Walter on his mouth, then slipped out of the room. He grabbed the car keys and walked outside the house. Unlocking the car, he got in the driver’s side and turned the key in the ignition. The engine rumbled to life and he put his seatbelt on, sat back and waited.

It wasn’t long before Walter was walking out of the house. He got in the passenger seat and put his own seatbelt on before saying, “I’ve spoken to both Martin and Dorian. They’re going to meet us at the bar.”

Ray nodded and put the car into gear. He drove along to the address that Grant had given him in silence, gathering his thoughts together in his mind.

He heard the sound before he reached it. Music blaring; and, beneath that, people laughing and shouting. Both music and shouts were loud enough to carry through even the closed windows. Ray glanced outside, towards the bright lights, and then at his husband. “Should we get out and head inside straight away? Or wait for Martin and Dorian?”

“We can get out of the car.” Giving action to words, Walter opened his door and stepped out onto the street.

Ray did the same, wincing as the music grew even louder as they stood on the street. He glanced around, hoping that Grant and Anubis would be outside the well-lit building and that they wouldn’t have to go looking for them inside.

It was a vain hope, as there was no sign of either of the two younger men. Ray held back a sigh and then glanced towards Walter, noticing that his husband had a faraway look in his eyes. He stepped closer; not giving into the urge to burrow under Walter’s arm, but close enough that their sides were almost brushing against each other. The close proximity was comforting, knowing he only had to take a couple of steps to be engulfed in Walter’s warm embrace.

The sound of another car pulling up drew Ray’s attention behind him and he watched as a car parked close behind his and Walter’s. Martin and Dorian got out of the car and quickly moved to join Walter and Ray.

Surprised, Ray looked at the other two. “Were you together?”

“Grant wanted a sleepover with Anubis. I think he was going to push him for information about his history as a guardian.” Martin frowned. “Obviously, he was feeling more restless than he’d let on.”

“Where’s Paul?” Walter asked.

“I asked him to stay behind,” Martin answered. “He’d fallen asleep fairly early. To be honest, so had I,” he admitted. “I suppose it must be a holdover from the curse, as Grant has been unaffected by the same level of exhaustion.”

“Have you gone inside yet?” Dorian asked.

“We only just got here ourselves,” Walter answered. He looked at Ray. “Grant only gave you the address, didn’t he? He didn’t tell you whether they were inside or outside?”

“Did you speak to Anubis?” Dorian questioned.

“Only to Grant,” Ray answered. “But I did hear him asking Anubis for the address. He didn’t say if they were inside or outside, though.”

“Then we’ll try inside,” Walter said. He started towards the building.

Ray walked alongside his husband, noticing that the door was wide open and there was no one standing outside. The four of them entered the building without incident and as he looked around, Ray could see bright lights all through the building; a whole myriad of different colours that danced and played over every available surface.

There were a lot of other people around, many in a state of drunkenness. A few were sitting on the floor, their eyes closed, but there was no one who was on their own, or who looked like they were in distress with no one to take care of them.

A familiar voice came from a few feet ahead of them. Anubis was hissing quietly, “Grant, we need to get out of here now. You’ve drunk far too much.”

“Nah, you don’t have to leave now!” The other voice was loud and piercing and wasn’t one that Ray recognised. And then the person it belonged to let out a loud laugh.

Walter quickly moved in the direction of the voices and Ray found himself standing in a small room, almost the size of a closet. The two missing younger men were stood there as well and their exit was blocked by another man, who was lurching from side to side and holding a cup in his hand, sloshing beer everywhere.

Walter wasted no time in walking towards the man and grabbing one arm, pulling it behind his back. “I’m Sherriff Walter Crow Horse,” he drawled. “I’m sure you’ve got a lot of people here who are either underage, or who otherwise shouldn’t be here. Now. It’s the middle of the night. And I’m too tired to go through and arrest everyone. So you get everyone out of here who shouldn’t be here and I won’t arrest you.” He flashed his badge and then let go of the man.

Casting an uncertain glance at Walter and then at the rest of them, the man dropped his cup of beer on the floor and quickly ran from the room.

Ray looked down with a grimace at his shoes, now splashed with beer, and then towards Anubis and Grant, the latter of whom was staring at him with wide, accusing eyes. “You told on me!”

“And I’m not sorry for it,” Ray replied. “You should have called Martin. Or Dorian.” He shifted out of the way, to allow the other two men to move over to their partners and check on them. He shifted closer to Walter’s side and relaxed when his husband wrapped his arm around his waist. He leaned in and hugged Walter, kissing his cheek.

“What were you thinking, Grant?” Martin stepped back to look into his younger lover’s eyes, clasping Grant’s face in his hands. “You sneaked out of the house, without telling me where you were going…why?”

Grant swallowed visibly and looked away from Martin, muttering softly, “I just wanted to get away for a while.”

Martin took a step back and hurt flashed briefly across his face, from what Ray could see of his profile.

Grant flinched and immediately stepped forward, into Martin’s arms, and hugged him tightly. “Not from you,” he whispered fiercely. “It’s just with everything that happened…I used to go out to bars and get drunk a lot. I mean, me and Paul ended up on your land cause we were looking for a party. I just…wanted to get blackout drunk and not think about things for a while.” Casting an apologetic glance at Anubis, he added, “Anubis didn’t want me to go alone, but I wasn’t really open to staying and listening to him, so he insisted on coming with me.” He paused and then muttered, “It wasn’t his fault. He just wanted to help me.”

“That’s a reason, but it isn’t an excuse,” Dorian said mildly.

Walter gently squeezed Ray’s waist and then stepped forward, clearing his throat. “I’d suggest you continue with the scolding back home, where no one else will be able to hear what you say to each other.”

“That car’s just outside.” Martin spoke to Grant and then looked at Walter. “You’re more than welcome to come back with us, if you don’t have any commitments you can’t get out of tomorrow.”

“I don’t think either of us will be fit for much tomorrow.” Walter moved back to Ray’s side and took his hand, then glanced sideways at him and raised his eyebrows.

Ray nodded and then let himself relax against his husband as Walter guided him out of the building. He didn’t need to look behind him to know that Martin was following with Grant; Dorian with Anubis.

They got outside without any further incidents and Ray walked alongside Walter as they reached their car. This time, he got in the passenger side, letting Walter drive.

Neither of them said anything as Walter followed Martin’s car away from the ongoing party. Ray sat back in his seat and let out a quiet sigh. Finally, when they were driving along one of the country roads, he asked, “Do you think Grant’s been feeling restless because he spent so long living under the shadow of the curse?”

“Maybe,” Walter allowed. “It’s certainly not the first time I’ve seen someone act out because they’ve been feeling restless and antsy. Of course, it’s normally you I have experience seeing that with.” He reached out and gently squeezed Ray’s leg. “You’ve been doing so much better recently. I’m so very proud of you.”

Ray smiled, feeling his cheeks heat up, and laced his fingers through Walter’s. “I’ve only been doing so well because of you,” he replied softly. “You make me a better person. You make me want to be a better person. Thank you.” He raised Walter’s hand to his lips and kissed it, then settled back with his husband’s hand still captured in his own.

They were both silent as they reached Martin’s house and Walter parked outside. Then, as the other four men got out of their car, Walter released Ray’s hand long enough to get out of the car and walk round to Ray’s side. He opened the door and took Ray’s hand once more, guiding him out of the car and following the other men to the front door.

Ray gripped Walter’s hand tightly and leaned into him, feeling his body relax. He didn’t speak as they walked into the house, but when they were shown into the main room, he waited for Walter to sit down on one of the armchairs and then sat himself on his husband’s lap, curling up there. Walter’s hand rested on his thigh and he sighed, feeling himself relax further as Walter touched and caressed him in an intimate, possessive way.

Martin walked over to the couch and sat down, drawing Grant round to stand in front of him. “Do you have anything to add?” he asked seriously.

“I don’t think there’s anything I can say that will make this better,” Grant admitted. He cast a glance back over his shoulder towards Walter and Ray, blushing, then looked at his partner. “Do you have to do this in front of the others?”

“You didn’t seem that worried about who might see you when you sneaked out without telling me where you were going.” Apparently in concession to Grant’s obvious embarrassment, though, he waited until he’d settled his younger lover in place before he lowered Grant’s pants and underwear.

Ray turned his face away as Martin lifted his hand, but he could still hear the first hard smack when it landed. And he also heard Grant’s sharply indrawn breath.

Ray’s attention was drawn to Dorian, who’d taken a seat in the other armchair and was holding Anubis’ hands, looking into his eyes. “I understand that you didn’t want Grant to leave on his own, but you should have woken me and told me what was happening. If you’d done that, you wouldn’t be in trouble now.”

“I know.” Anubis took a step forward, his hands going to his pants. He fumbled with them and then pushed both his pants and underwear down before settling himself in place over Dorian’s knees.

For the next few minutes, the only sounds in the room were of Martin and Dorian spanking their partners and Grant’s and Anubis’ whimpers and soft cries in response. Ray pressed his face into Walter’s chest, but he could still hear the sounds of the twin spankings being given.

Walter didn’t say anything and just held Ray close, hand alternating between gently squeezing and rubbing his thigh. His other hand rubbed gently over Ray’s back, every so often giving a gentle kiss to Ray’s hair or his cheek.

There was something almost comforting about being cuddled in his husband’s arm, on Walter’s lap, while the two men were being spanked. Ray knew, from firsthand experience, how painful it was to be taken in hand like that…but at the same time, spankings were expressions of love. And he never doubted how much Walter loved him when he was being spanked. Even if sitting down afterwards was difficult.

The steady sound of flesh smacking flesh increased a bit and it took only a few more moments for Ray to hear the tears start. He shuddered and pressed his face into Walter’s neck, breathing in deep as he heard the spankings draw to a stop and the two men move onto comforting.

By the time Ray thought it was ‘safe’ to look up, he could see that both Grant and Anubis were redressed and cuddled on their partners’ laps. Grant’s eyes were a bit red, but Anubis seemed relatively unfazed by the spanking.

Ray settled back onto Walter’s lap and glanced up as Paul appeared, hovering in the doorway, wearing his pajamas and with his hair mussed from sleep. He glanced towards Martin and Grant, asking in a sleepy voice, “Is it safe to come in?”

“Yeah.” Martin situated Grant on one knee and held his other arm out to Paul, gathering his other young partner on his lap and hugging them close.

Ray squirmed back and let his head rest against Walter’s shoulder. He felt warm and comforted and safe in his husband’s arms. And it was far too easy to close his eyes and slip into a half-doze, knowing Walter would keep watch for the both of them.

The End