Chapter Text
Cleaning was always your favorite chore. Although it was the least favorite of most of the other Siblings, there were many reasons why you tend to choose it on the rare opportunity given a choice on which chore to do for the week. For one, it was good busy work. When cleaning, it was easy to fuss over the small details in order to keep the mind and body busy. Second, it kept you away from most people.
Cleaning took place in rooms not in use, obviously, which meant large halls to sweep when no one usually walked through them, and pews to wipe with no one else around. A perfect time to clear the mind.
And so you did. You cleaned away for hours on end, humming tunes to yourself to practice, getting the rise and fall of each note perfect.
If fact, you were so engrossed in the tune you came up with, the sound of the door slamming shut behind you startled you almost to your soul. The glass candelabra you held slipped from your hands, the glass cleaner that coated it making it slippery. Impossible to catch. It hits the ground and shatters, the shards erupting across the floor as if you were holding a bowl of peas rather than what was most likely a priceless church heirloom.
Without a seconds longer glance at the damage across the floor, your head whips around to see who came in, ready to bash the Sibling that caused you to do such a thing. But when you saw the masked ghoul, your face lost all color.
In fact, you say nothing. In your head, the safest thing to do was wait. With the ghouls, there were many ways this could go, some of them good, some of them very very bad. You swallow nausea bubbling in your throat and wait for him to say anything. There was only one ghoul you were friendly with, the others you hardly knew it all. And this was not the relatively friendly Aether that had helped you reach the top shelf in the storage closet and other nice favors.
The ghoul crossed his arms over his chest, his head slightly tilted to the side. His boot tapped the floor in front of him and he finally spoke, "Now what to do about this…" You could hear the ghoulish rumble of mischief. Still maintaining your silence, he swaggers over to you. He was slightly taller than you, this ruled out the fire ghoul, much to your relief. Sodo was known for being particularly cruel to the Siblings when they made mistakes. Very cruel. A sister you knew was nearly traumatized after the fiery ghoul took a chunk out of her.
"What would you want?" He says finally when he's close enough that his boots touch your dress slippers.
"I'm sorry?" You stutter out, confused by his question.
He chuckles darkly, more to himself than anything. He leans in close to your ear, "Well, I know what you would like." the hot breath sends a shudder down your spine, though you try your best not to let it outwardly show. You were all for displays of sin for the Dark Lord, however, the ghouls made you uncomfortable. Sodo was not the only one with a reputation for craving the blood of the Sibling. He leans away again so you're staring into the dark eye holes of the mask. "You would like it," He annunciated the T sharply, as if it was a bite, "if I just walked out of here and pretended I never saw you smash such an important thing to Papa." He said that last part in a way that you were sure if you could see his face under the mask, he was puffing out his bottom lip to mock you.
"However, that is not one of the options. Let me break down for you what can happen here." His voice is more serious than before, the sing-song mocking gone. "One," He holds a finger up in front of your face and you do your best not to flinch away. "I drag your sorry ass to Papa right now and tell him how careless you were and he will punish you how he sees fit. I do warn you though, he is in a foul mood today. He's been balancing books all day and you know how math makes the old man so irritable."
That sounded like a terrible option and you had a feeling you might know what the second option might be based on the way he's approached you. Despite your fear of the ghouls and not even having a clue who this is, you bet he knows you'll choose the second option.
"Option two?" You ask a little exasperated. He was letting the suspense build up so much when he was just going to ask you to suck him off. Someone else might just walk in by this point and see the glass on the floor and this would all be for nothing.
He reels back a little at your tone, he shakes his head and you hear him mutter something about you being no fun. "You owe me." He cocks his head again. "Whenever and whatever I want." His hand comes up to grab your arm, and he squeezes but not in a way that feels overly aggressive or violent. "I want a blank check with your fucking pretty little signature on it."
That is a big fucking ask. Big enough that it makes your head spin with the choice. It felt like there was no winning here like you were doomed either way. As if Lucifer himself was hell-bent on making your day worse, the booming and angry voice comes down the hall. Loud enough you can hear it’s Papa. You look at your watch. He'd be preparing for prayer starting soon. Prayer that takes place in this room.
The ghoul chuckles again. "Think fast."
Papa is still yelling at whomever he was with. His stew was cold it sounds like. As he gets closer his voice becomes more clear. "Ten lashings! No respect here anymore, I cannot be having it." Ten lashings for cold stew. That decides it for you.
"Fine." The ghoul stands up straighter when you respond. "Keep me out of trouble with Papa and you have your blank check." The words feel vile.
Quickly his hands fist in the back of your hair, pulling it back a little, and his claws dug in slightly. "You'll hear from me. Come when I call, my obedient little creature." If you thought your stomach could not turn any more, you were proved wrong by the possessive nature of his words. You were so fucked.
Right as the door handle started to turn, the ghoul bursts out the door. You can hear Papa, "My ghoul!" He starts, "Swiss, you cannot jump out at an old man like that." He claps the ghoul, Swiss, on his shoulder. Swiss steps out and closes the door behind him.
You scramble to the floor, scooping up the chunks of broken glass in your hand and dumping them in a bin nearby. You feel a sting as cuts begin to form on your hands. Papa was still going to come in, you had to act fast while Swiss distracted him. He could come in any minute still if Swiss couldn’t distract him long enough.
You remind yourself to sing a hymn later because while the candelabra was not completely shatter resistant (clearly) all the chunks are large with no splinters of glass to sparkle on the floor to give you away. Soon, the door opens again and you straighten up, holding your injured hands behind your back. But Papa doesn’t come in, just the ghoul again.
You aren't familiar with Swiss. You're relatively new to the abbey, and the group was touring when you arrived. They've been back for 2 months, but you only managed to learn the names of a few.
But when he takes you in, your hands behind your back his back pulls taut. "What did you do?" He puzzles, walking quickly up to you and grabbing the arms you were clearly hiding. He hisses when he sees the blood pooling there, soon to drip onto the floor. Right before gravity is about to take the first drop to the ground, he pulls the hand to his mouth and pulls the liquid in.
Pained, you try to pull from him but the grip he has on your arm makes you feel handcuffed to a brick wall. "Swiss." You hiss back, displeased. A shudder rocks him from head to toe as your blood hits his tongue, the moan he lets slip long and drawn. When the light cuts on that hand clot, he moved to grab the other one. His skin almost takes on a greyish tone and you think you see something whip behind him but you're unsure.
Unable to keep him away, he moved his tongue across the second hand. "Fuck!" You cry out as his tongue carves out the wound in your palm. When he finally loosens his grip pulls his shaking hands to rub the back of his neck and he lets out a sigh of relief. His back falls against the door behind him as he slumps slightly, conveniently the only way for you to get out as well.
"Next time, use a dustpan. But that should help with the pain." You were about to ask how the fuck sopping up your blood with his mouth-- sensually, but you tried not to think about that part-- would help with the pain. But when you look down to your hands, the cuts are still there, red and angry, the pain is barely noticeable.
"You have pain-relieving saliva?" You ask blandly, although still a little grateful. Though you won't say it.
"It tends to make those giving blood more…" He pauses as if thinking of a word that won't make him sound like more of a monster than he already is, "pliable." Is the word he lands on and he seems satisfied with it.
"Meaning so they'll struggle less as you drain them."
"Sometimes." He says in an amused tone. "Sometimes we don’t want the pain to distract too much from… other activities." He pauses as if he might say something else, but says, "Go. I'll find you when I'm ready to cash in." The smirk he must be hiding under the mask wicked as the devil could create.
You push out the door quickly and pass Papa going to the same room. Whatever distracting Swiss had for him was temporary, and he seems more pissed than before charging up to the door and slamming it behind him.
You knew what you were thinking next was a terrible idea, but couldn’t help it and you quickly moved back to the door. You pushed your ear up against the door knowing Swiss was still inside.
"That felt like a chase of wild geese, my ghoul." Papa scolded. "Explain why." He said simply. This is when you wondered if it had all been a trick and Swiss was going to give you up anyway. Any moment Papa would notice the piece missing from the altar, someone had to explain where it went.
"I'm sorry Papa. I tried to distract you from what I did. But like a good ghoul, I wish to repent."
"You kneel before me, but you have not spoken what you've done." Your breath catches in your throat at the ghouls submissive gesture though you could not see it.
"I was worshiping with a sister by the altar and broke the crystal candelabra. I tried to hide it but I don't wish to disappoint you, Papa."
"I am not disappointed, my ghoul," Swiss mutters his thanks. "However, for wasting my time and breaking the candelabra I must punish you."
"Of course Papa."
"Thirty lashings. Stand for me." You head Swiss shuffle to his feet. "But this is later, I must prepare for service and I have been held up long enough."
"Yes, Papa. Thank you, Papa." With this, you take off running down the hall. Knowing you eavesdropped on this will only make whatever Swiss wished to do to you worse. That is if he hadn’t already planned on draining you dry from the get-go.
Thirty lashings would have been a very severe punishment for you. A kind of punishment that meant spending time in the infirmary.