Archive of Our Own ^beta

It all started with those 5 words, "Okay, just hear me out…" Whenever Zoey uttered that terrifying phrase, they knew it would be followed with some of the most unhinged shit they'd ever heard.

"You have, like, a lot of hair right Rumi?" Rumi's hands froze on the piano and her head turned slowly. Zoey was the picture of innocence as she lay across the couch, phone gripped in one hand and a lazy grin on her face.

Mira was curled up on the other side of the practice room, glasses on and a thick hardback book in her hand, but at the too sweet tone in Zoey's voice she snapped the book shut and gave them her full attention as the chaos began to unfold.

Rumi's voice was warm with cautious affection, "I do yes. Why, what are you plotting?"

Zoey recoiled and pressed one hand against her chest, eyes wide with mock indignation, "Plotting? Me? I would never!" She held that pose for a beat, before an impish grin spread across her face.

"Okay, so I had an idea, and I was just scrolling through some forums online and I found this interesting thread! And as I was reading it I thought 'Hey! Mira was just bragging the other day about her rope tying skills, and Rumi really liked when we used those handcuffs the other night, and this can't be that hard to figure out between the three of us and it looks kinda fun?"

Rumi blinked slowly, trying not to blush as some of Zoey's rambled words finally registered. Mira sighed, laying down her book and crossing the room. She took hold of Zoey's flailing hands and raised an eyebrow, waiting until Zoey paused and looked at her to speak.

"Zo, babe, we can't read your mind remember. You gotta actually tell us what you're talking about first." Her scolding was never harsh, not with them, and there was always a slight lilt of amusement in her voice when Zoey went on one of her rambles.

Zoey took a deep breath, rewinding her thoughts. "Okay, so you guys know what Shibari is right?" she glanced between them for confirmation before continuing, Mira's smirk and Rumi's ever heightening blush providing all the answer she needed. "Well I've always thought that looked really cool so I was doing some reading into how it all worked, and I found this!"

She handed her phone to Mira, who took a moment to read through the thread she had found before humming quietly in contemplation, "Yeah, I could probably make this work. Don't get me wrong, it's a truly insane idea, and you're a little freak for even thinking of it, but I'm down to try if Rumi is too."

With that, they both turned to face Rumi, still sat frozen by the piano. For a moment none of them spoke, then Rumi's voice came out, slightly too high pitched and squeaky to sound normal. "I'm sorry wh… what does this have to do with my hair?!"

Mira smirked, and without a word she tossed Zoey's phone across the room. Rumi scrambled to catch it, and Zoey couldn't suppress her giggle, Rumi must be really flustered if she's getting clumsy like that.

There were a few seconds of silence as Rumi skim read some of the thread, none of it really sinking in until her eyes caught on an image posted at the very end. A beautiful woman, who was completely naked, and tied up in a simple shibari harness. Rumi could feel the heat underneath her skin, could see the bright flare of her patterns as she realised that the woman wasn't just tied up with rope, but with her own hair, braided and woven into tight strands.

"So?" Zoey's voice was a little quieter now, uncertainty creeping in the longer the silence held, "What do you think?"

Rumi sighed, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself. "I think," she said, the hint of a shy smile starting to show, "We have a lot of planning to do."

The rest of the week passed in flashes of nervous anticipation, the second they got back home that night, Zoey had fallen into a research deep-dive, sending them articles and diagrams and lists of instructions on safety and preparation, and Mira had carefully read through every last detail, if they were going to do this, she wanted to be as prepared as possible.

Rumi had a much less active part to play in the preparation, but they made sure to all sit down together a few times to talk things over, and by the time they weekend rolled around they had a solid plan. By some miracle they had been able to clear all their schedules for the entire day, and so, as the late morning light filtered through the windows, Zoey sat by the desk in their room, several pages of printed out instructions layed out before her as she read over them again and again.

Mira was perched on their bed, checking through all the equipment they had prepared, various hair products, a few short lengths of rope to help hold the strands of hair together, and of course safety scissors to cut her loose in case of emergency.

All they needed now was the star of the show, Rumi had been stood in the shower for almost an hour, physically and mentally preparing herself for what was to come. Mira hadn't been wrong, this was truly an insane idea, and yet it wasn't just nerves that had her trembling in anticipation, but a flush of excitement far hotter than the scalding water that poured over her skin.

She stepped out of the bathroom, towel wrapped loosely around her as she carried half her hair to stop it dragging along the floor, there was a reason she almost never left it unbraided. As she stepped into the bedroom, the tension in the air was palpable.

She sat on the edge of the bed, Mira wordlessly slipping into position behind her. Zoey rose to stand before them, clapping her hands together once and announcing with a grin, "Positions everyone! We have a lot of work to do!"

Any shred of nerves remaining faded then, replaced by the low chuckle that rumbled from Mira behind her, these were her girls, her beautiful, hilarious, crazy girlfriends, she was always safe with them.

"Okay, so we need 5 braids, two for the arms, two for the legs, and one for the harness. All pretty simple patterns, and easy to untie quickly if we need to." Zoey sat on the bed next to Rumi, and they looked over the diagrams one last time as Mira began the slow process of drying and brushing out Rumi's long hair and braiding it into tight, clean strands.

The braiding alone took several hours, Mira and Zoey worked together, with Rumi helping out where she could. They laughed and chatted and sang along to Zoey's bizarre playlist of music as they worked, to anyone watching it would just look like three friends braiding a ridiculous amount of hair, but there was an invisible pressure slowly building between them, the air live with an electric energy.

The act of braiding Rumi's hair was not in itself anything special, they'd helped with it hundreds of times before, but this time was different, because they all knew what came next.

By the time they were done it was late into the afternoon already, at some point in all the chaos Zoey had ordered takeaway food, so as Mira finished off the last braid and prepared to start on the first tie, Zoey was clearing away the piles of empty food cartons, tonight was going to be full of 'strenuous activity' she had explained as she waddled in with bags stacked high, so obviously they needed their carb loading ritual first.

Up to this point, they had all been relatively calm, ignoring the tension thrumming between them as they worked, but now, as Rumi shrugged her robe off and sat before them completely bare, that Tension pulled taught, freezing them all in place for a beat.

She was gorgeous, the smooth curves of her body barely concealing the lean muscle that rippled beneath the surface. Her patterns cut across her whole body, sharp edges iridescent like someone had injected stardust into her skin. She was still self-conscious about them, she probably always would be to some extent, but they were more than happy to remind her that they loved her, not just despite them, but because of them too.

"Wow…" Zoey was stood in the doorway, jaw hanging comically wide as she shamelessly raked her gaze over Rumi's body.

A scarlet blush rose on Rumi's face, "What! It's nothing you haven't seen a thousand times before!" She shifted, instinct pulling her to cross her arms across chest.

Zoey smirked, crossing the room in a few confident strides and took Rumi's hands in hers, pulling them down into her lap. "I've seen a thousand sunsets too, doesn't mean I can't still enjoy the view." She pressed her lips to Rumi's briefly, stealing the gasp that fluttered out before spinning on her heels and sauntering back over to the desk, leaving Rumi stunned breathless.

"Alright lovebirds, settle down." Mira scolded teasingly, as if she hadn't just been staring herself, "We still have a lot of work to do. Zo you're on instructions, I've got the hands on stuff, and Rumi…" Her voice dropped into a low gravely rasp as she leant in, lips brushing against the curve of Rumi's ear, "You just have to sit there and look pretty, okay princess?"

"Uhh! What happened to 'settle down'!" Zoey exclaimed, as she sat down next to Rumi, papers in hand.

Mira just leant back, gathering the first braid in her hand and smirking in satisfaction as she saw the shiver that ran down Rumi's spine. "I'm perfectly settled."

Zoey rolled her eyes, bringing up the first sheet of instructions. "Okay, there's three parts here, the chest harness, the arms, and the legs. We're gonna do the chest first cause that's the least restrictive right?" She glanced between them, Mira already had one braid in hand, leaning over to read the instructions off the sheet, and Rumi, still flushed, gave a small nod.

Mira wound the strand round Rumi's chest, the weight pressing lightly just beneath her breasts before pausing, "One last thing before we start, everyone remembers the ground rules? Any of us can safeword out at any time for any reason, no judgement, and if we need a check in at any point, any of us can call colours. Green is all good to keep going, Yellow is we need to pause or change something, and Red is immediate stop. Understood?"

Zoey gave a mock salute "Yes Ma'am!" And Rumi smiled, nodding again. As silly as it felt saying it all out loud every time, it was important to remember safety first every time. She remembered the first time they'd had this talk, after the initial awkwardness of bringing it up in the first place had passed, they had devolved into a 2 hour debate as to what a suitable safeword would be. Zoey had won in the end (she always did), and insisted on Turtle, 'Because they are pure and innocent creatures, and so nothing scandalous is allowed in their presence!'.

Rumi felt a comforting warmth spread through her chest at the memory, which was stoked into something hotter by the casual brush of Mira's nails dragging gently across her skin, winding round, up over one shoulder then back to the other. She worked expertly, like she had done this a hundred times as Zoey flicked between pages and read out instructions.

Time seemed to blur as they worked, and Rumi sat in silence, feeling the thrill of being so exposed but safe at the same time. The harness was done in a few minutes, an upside down star on her upper chest, with a loop hooking under her breasts.

They were half way through the arm bind when everything went wrong, her wrists were tied together behind her back, another set of loops tied at her forearms and a third barely started on her upper arms, pulling on her shoulders and forcing her back to arc slightly under the pressure. A shrill sound pierced the quiet rhythm they had settled into and they all froze, it was a phone ringing, Rumi's phone, left discarded in a pile with her clothes on the floor.

A moment passed before Zoey bolted into action, darting across the room and pulling the phone out with a triumphant twirl. She ran back the the bed, holding it out for them to see Bobby's name and photo scrolling across the screen. Before Rumi had the chance to tell her to just ignore it, that Bobby could call back if it was a real emergency, Zoey was swiping her finger across the screen.

"Hi Bobby!" She exclaimed brightly.

"Zoey? Sorry I thought I called Rumi." Bobby's voice came through slightly muffled, the sound of papers shuffling on a desk and unintelligible voices in the background.

"Oh no, you did," Zoey turned to them a wicked grin on her face, "Rumi's just… a little tied up at the moment." Her voice was saccharine sweet, but her eyes glinted with mischief as Mira choked back a laugh. "Is it urgent? I can go get her if you need."

Rumi let out a panicked whine just quiet enough that the phone didn't pick it up. "No no, don't bother her, I just had an update about her interview for that magazine tomorrow, there's been some mess up with the schedule and they want her there an hour earlier to make sure they can fit everything in." Bobby paused, voice suddenly sounding distant as he yelled an answer to someone, "Sorry about that, I'll send her an email update with all the details if you could just let her know to check it."

Zoey nodded, sitting back on the bed and absentmindedly tracing the patterns along Rumi's thigh, "I'll make sure she gets the message."

"Thanks Zoey, and sorry again for disturbing you all on your day off, I'll let you go now, see you tomorrow." They said their farewells and Zoey hung up with a click, gently tossing the phone to one side.

She turned back to them, and Rumi was startled by the intensity in her gaze, "No more distractions."

They finished the last tie with relative ease, a simple leg bind keeping each leg bent underneath her. Rumi was knelt in the centre of the bed, Mira sprawled out behind her, and Zoey stood waiting impatiently at the end of the bed.

Rumi felt vulnerable in the best way, her body on full display and completely helpless as her girlfriends stared with no shame nor shyness in their eyes, just a ravenous sort of hunger that set Rumi's nerves alight.

The first thing she felt was Mira's hands, ghosting teasingly across her thighs. "Look at her, so pretty for us isn't she. All for us." Mira's voice was a conspiratorial whisper.

Zoey hummed in agreement, crawling across the bed towards them, eyes locked on Rumi's. "She's perfect, all tied up like a toy, ready for us to play with, and trust me, we're going to enjoy playing with you all night." Zoey's hands joined Mira's in teasing her, feather light touches brushing down her sides and resting at her waist.

Rumi was flushed and breathless already, they always knew exactly how to get her worked up in seconds, and they were taking full advantage of her helplessness. One of Mira's hands raised up to gently brace against her neck just as Zoey leant in and brushed their lips together in a chaste kiss. Before she could stop herself a pitiful whimper spilled from her, whole body trembling with need.

Mira's answering laugh was low and menacing, "She's so flustered already, and we've barely even touched her. Look at her she can barely even speak." Mira's fingers pressed slightly against the side of Rumi's neck, but it still wasn't enough, still just teasing, and Zoey's hand had dropped away from her entirely, her absence stung Rumi's skin like ice. "Use your words for us princess, what do you want? What do you need?"

She tried to speak, but the words caught in her throat, trapped between the racing beat of her heart and the cool grip of Mira's hand on her neck. She tried again, taking a deep shuddering breath, "More," It was all she could handle, "I need more."

Mira's answering squeeze sent a shock of heat down to her core. "Good girl." Her voice was a soft purr, almost predatory. "You want more? Then lets see how much you can take." Her hand splayed low on Rumi's back, pressing until she was half bent forward. Their fingers brushed together, two short taps. A nonverbal check in, Rumi tapped back twice in silent signal, keep going.

Mira's hands vanished for a moment, and Rumi almost whimpered at the loss of contact, except Zoey was immediately there filling the empty space with hungry kisses and roaming hands tracing the lines of her braids as they wrapped round her chest. Zoey's hands cupped her breasts gently, thumbs brushing over her nipples with infuriating tenderness.

Her broken whine sounded pitiful, but Zoey just grinned, eyes flicking over Rumi's shoulder for a second, then she pinched, and twisted. In the same moment Mira's hand came down sharp and hard on her exposed ass.

Rumi's whole body set alight, pain and pleasure mixing into exquisite bliss. A moan broke free from her throat, echoing off the walls for a brief moment before Zoey silenced it with a kiss.

"How many do you think she can take? Five?" Mira teased, fingers light and soothing over the spot she had just hit.

Zoey pulled back, lips wet and breathless, "Oh she can take ten at least! Five on each side sounds fair." She leaned in close, lips bushing against Rumi's cheek. "Think you can handle that baby?"

Rumi was trembling, but managed to nod once. "Yes… Please." She didn't care how pathetic she sounded anymore, she was safe here, safe with them.

Mira's hand retreated again and Rumi shivered with anticipation. "Why don't you count for us princess, this is number two."

Mira's hand hit again, and Rumi swallowed down her moan to speak. "Two."

Zoey's lips bushed her jaw, kissing a path down her thrumming patterns to her neck as Mira struck once more. Her voice was a trembling whisper "Three."

Another one, this time accompanied with a sharp bite right on her pulse point from Zoey. "Fouu…" Rumi broke, her voice trailing off into a long moan she couldn't hold in anymore.

"You've got this baby, just one more." Zoey whispered, lips still pressed against Rumi's neck.

Her tongue swept over where she had bitten, comforting her with light kisses as the last strike brought tears to her eyes. She cried out, "Five."

Mira leant in, her chest pressing against Rumi's back, "Very good, you're half way there." Her hands settled on Rumi's waist, grounding. "Colours?" Her voice was lighter now, softer.

Zoey was grinning, "Green", they both looked to Rumi, eyes closed, patters flickering a deep pink. "Green" she confirmed.

Mira's own confirmation echoed theirs, before she pulled back, shifting slightly, her hand brushing softly against the other side of Rumi's ass.

The pain hit again, fresh and new and all the more delicious. "Six."

And again, "Seven."

Another twist of her nipples, and again. "Eight."

A bite at the base of her throat, sharp enough to bruise, and again. "Nine."

And again once more, but this time Zoey didn't bite, didn't pinch or twist or kiss, instead she slid one hand down, brushing over the toned muscle of Rumi's stomach and pressing against that fire burning deep in her core. She didn't even try counting, the moment she opened her mouth a cry tore itself from her lips, loud and shameless as every part of her ached with heat.

Mira hooked one finger under one of the braids of Rumi's harness, gently tugging her back upright, "You did so good for us Rumi, such pretty sounds you made." One hand wrapped round and pressed lightly against her stomach, "That's it, lie back for me, Zoey is gonna make you feel so good."

She was layed back as far as possible with her legs still tied beneath her, Her head rested on Mira's chest, a solid wall holding her in place as Zoey leant over her, peppering kisses down her chest and stomach. Nipping and soothing over and over, leaving a trail of faint bruises in her wake.

Rumi felt the tension building within her as Zoey pulled her legs apart, laying down on the bed in front of them. She let out a soft gasp as her fingers brushed the inside of Rumi's thighs. "Look at her Mir, she's soaked."

Mira just chucked that low rumble again that sent waves of fire through her, "Poor thing, she must be so desperate." Mira ran her hand over Rumi's stomach, never quite reaching low enough to give her the pressure she so desperately needed.

Her other hand came up to cup one of Rumi's breasts, stroking over her nipple in gentle flicks as Zoey slowly, torturously kissed her way up Rumi's thighs. "Well, I think we can help with that, don't you?"

Zoey just looked up at her, eyes wide beneath her lashes. "You ready for me baby?"

Rumi could feel the warmth of Zoey's breath on her thighs, and her muscles twitched and trembled at the sensation. "Yes, please yes!" She cried, hips trying to buck forward but pinned back by her restraints and Mira's hand pressing firm against her.

Then Zoey finally stopped teasing her, tongue darting out to flick across her clit, and Rumi's whole world set ablaze.

Mira's hands were steady and gentle, grounding her even as Zoey drove her mind and body to the brink of devastation. All their teasing, all of the pleasure and the pain heightening every feeling as Zoey kept going, faster and faster.

She felt Mira rolling her nipples between her fingers, heard whispers of praise that melted in the heat before she could make out the words. She felt Mira's lips on her neck, nursing the tender spot right where Zoey had been moments before, and she felt Zoey now, ravenous as she ate her out.

Rumi could feel her climax building as the cacophony of sensation blurred together into mindless pleasure. She felt a sudden pressure, as Zoey thrust two fingers into her, curling right into the sweet spot that always made Rumi see stars, and everything erupted.

Every muscle in her body clenched and relaxed and clenched again as she rode the waves of pleasure higher and higher, a groan ripped out of her throat as she trembled, but they didn't stop. Zoey pressed harder, and Mira's hand roamed lower, pressing firm against her.

Together they coaxed every last moan and scream out of her until her throat was raw and her body lay limp between them. Only then did Mira stop her teasing, and Zoey pulled her fingers out, crawling up her body until they were face to face.

She slid her fingers into Rumi's mouth, the sweet taste of her own cum making her gasp in surprise.

"That," Zoey uttered, sounding as breathless as Rumi felt, "Was the hottest thing I've ever seen."

A small laugh bubbled up in Rumi's chest, and Mira held her tight. Not teasing anymore, just a warm, grounding hug. "You were perfect Rumi, you did so well."

After a few seconds she lifted Rumi gently away from her, hands working quickly to untie the bindings around her legs, then her arms, and finally across her chest.

Rumi's mind was blank, exhausted from everything they had done as she curled up weakly in Mira's arms. After a few minutes she felt herself get scooped up off the bed, and didn't even have the energy to protest as she was carried into their bathroom and Mira layed with her in the enormous, steaming hot bathtub Zoey had ran to start for them.

Zoey climbed in with them, slowly washing Rumi's body with gentle strokes. She fell asleep in Mira's arms, with Zoey pressed in next to her. Her heart warmed by the steam hanging in the air around them and the soft words whispered in her ears.