“Welcome back~,” Miss beamed.

 

“Glad to be back,” I yawned, stretching my arms and legs.

 

Miss gave an amused, barely audible, squeal; quickly followed by her vine pressing against my nose. My hands jumped to that ridiculous gesture as I gave a single excited yip. I rolled my eyes, put my hands back down and then stared into her eyes defiantly. This proved to be a mistake. Her eyes were spiralling inwards and before I had registered the danger this possessed, I was already caught under their spell. My mind slowed down and my snarky rebuke was left unformed in the back of my throat.

 

“That’s cheating,” I said; the words long and drawn out, with very little weight behind them. Miss gave another delighted noise which reverberated throughout me; each echo bringing a layer of warmth and driving my thoughts further away. I wouldn’t say I was mindless par say, and I distinctly remember holding onto two thoughts. First; I found it deeply unsettling how quickly these interactions were starting to feel normal. Second; The noise she made was infectious and I was finding it extremely difficult to stay upset with her.

 

The brushing resumed. My higher cognitive function did not.

 

Each time she encountered a knot, Miss would say a foreign word and then smooth it out with the brush. Throughout all of this, I continued to stare deep into her eyes, losing more awareness of my surroundings. She kept me enthralled like that for some time.

 

Encounter a knot, brush it away. Words to engrain the behaviour. Focus honed, thoughts floating; mind empty. Knot, brush, words. Focus, thoughts floating. Brush and word, focus and empty. Brush, word, empty… Br- Brush, word… empty. Brush… Bush… Bu… B…

 

 

…

 

“Darling, you are hopeless~.” Distant laughter. “I suppose it would be unfair to tease you in this state. Hmm, for now at least~. But what to do, what to do? Oh! I know just the thing~!” A soft fox was put into my hands. “Now Star, listen closely; It’s important you give me your full attention.” The empty thoughts were replaced with the sound of singing.

 

“Up, up, up.”

 

My attention snapped back into focus. The two of us were still in the living room, with my being on Miss’s lap. Thoughts kicked back in and memories were restored leaving one very unhappy Zeitha. “How! Dare-“ A vine pressed against my lips and my chin was forcefully closed.

 

“Let’s not pretend to be angry little Star,” Miss said, bringing another vine to my head.

 

It’s worth noting that I wasn’t bound at this time and thus could have quite easily moved out of her lap, but for some reason, I did not. Miss removed the two vines from my lips and chin, affording me the right to speak. “Choose your words carefully darling~.”

 

It will come as no surprise to you when I say I did not.

 

“Your blatant disregard for consent and messing with me is starting to error me off!” I yelled.

 

Miss gave a deep hum and the corners of her eyes flickered red. It was brief and faint, but I caught it. A book was retrieved and placed next to me open; pages were turned and a vine pointed to an extract. “Read,” Miss commanded.

 

A little startled by her quick change in demeanour I read the words out loud. “In the case of a sophont displaying such behaviours, the compact may intervene and (dependent on the severity) place the sophont through a mandatory domestication plan.”

 

She lifted my finger and turned to a different page. “Read,” she commanded again.

 

“a floret is not permitted political rights within the compact-“

 

“Stop,” Miss commanded. Another page was turned and at the top, it read ‘Domesticable behaviours.’ She pointed at another extract that fell under the ‘extreme’ sub-category. I continued reading.

 

“a willingness and repeated demonstrations of self-harm.” My hand was once again removed and the book closed, before being moved out of sight.

 

“Shall we address your earlier comment?” Miss asked. Despite her neutral tone, I found myself somewhat fearful. I nodded and tried to keep my movements slow and measured. “Wonderful,” she continued. “We’ve covered this before but to reiterate; You. Belong. To. Me. I, in return, have the responsibility, duty and pleasure of managing your well-being and ensuring all your needs are addressed and taken care of. Despite your personal opinions, do you understand this?” I wanted to protest but we all know how that’d end up. I gave another nod.

 

“Good girl~.” The vine on my head started to run little circles across my scalp. “As your owner, I am not required to gain your consent before I decide something.” Miss paused and examined my face. Vines coiled around me and she embraced me into a hug. “Darling,” she whispered. “things will be easier if you accept your fate sooner as opposed to later. You’re precious to me and I’ll never deliberately harm you unless it’s necessary, such as helping you overcome a mental barrier. I know you’ve been abused and that you don’t trust easily, but I will prove I am someone worth investing that trust into.”

 

“I… I can’t. How can I trust you?” I asked meekly. “You can say I’m precious, or that you won’t hurt me as much as you want, but the fact remains. My freedom is gone; you’ve messed with my mind and you’re putting me into a trance, or drugs into my system on a whim. I realise I’m repeating myself, but you’re not doing much to help your case here…”

 

“Darling, your freedom led you to death's door. In fact, had we not intervened, you would be dead; I won’t sugar-coat that. In regards to messing with your mind.” She paused. “I admit I have made some changes to align you with my desires. Your swearing is a good example; I find it unsophisticated and in poor taste. That being said, I haven’t forced any changes upon you that ultimately change your character or self-identity. In regards to putting you into a trance…” she giggled. “That was entirely your fault I’m afraid.”

 

“What?” I asked incredulously.

 

“Those are my natural eyes. I don’t recall asking you to look at them, nor do I remember holding your head in place. If you lost yourself to my eyes, you did it because that’s what you desired.”

 

“You’re lying,” I rebuked. “Your eyes don’t spiral like that normally and they’re certainly not spiralling now.”

 

Miss giggled again. “I am consciously distorting the light so it isn’t as mesmerising to you. That’s not easy to do darling, and you’ll forgive me if I was more preoccupied with doting on you than keeping that element in check. By the time I realised what was happening I no longer had a desire to avert your gaze. After all, you’re a sweet girl who values freedom above all else~.” She winked and wore the smuggest face I have ever seen. “If my darling Star desires to lose herself in my eyes, it would be remiss of me to not give her what she wants~?”

 

I let out a long-frustrated cry. She was wrong! I didn’t want this! I mean… NO! When she gets in your head Zeitha you’ve already lost. These were mind games and nothing more. Resilience, fortitude and barriers. This is how you stay safe. This is how we’ve always stayed safe. But comf- SHUT UP BRAIN! Stars! Engaging in simultaneous arguments was exhausting.

 

“Star?” Miss asked.

 

“Agh! Fine!” I yelled. “Thank you for distorting your eyes and please keep doing it until my inevitable freedom,” I huffed.

 

“I wonder how long you’ll retain that line of thinking~,” Miss teased.

 

Hopefully, long enough I thought to myself. Time passed and things settled down between us. I was retained in her hold and given all the kisses and head pats, much to my dismay. Then suddenly, without warning, Miss stopped and held me at arm’s length.

 

“Star,” she said seriously. “Trust is a two-way exchange.” Her chest gave way and opened up revealing a layer of vines, which themselves opened up to reveal a large core. My eyes were quickly covered before I could succumb to the lights’ allure. “Give me your hand please.” I gave it. “Good, this may feel a little weird, but trust me as I am trusting you.” She pressed my hand against the core.

 

“Soft,” I said aloud, causing Miss to laugh. It boomed throughout her body and ran through my hand and up through my arm. I became overwhelmed with unknown emotions as a wave of relaxation coursed through my metaphorical veins. My hand was quickly removed.

 

“That’s enough of that. I can’t have you breaking before you’re ready~.”

 

“What?” I asked, struggling to find my words, or my thoughts or anything else to be honest. “What was that?”

 

“That was my core, or if it’s easier for you, we can refer to it as my heart.”

 

“I just touched your heart?” I asked in quiet disbelief. Miss nodded. “But. Why!? Why would you expose that to me?”

 

“Because trust starts with a leap of faith. My core is my vulnerability.” She sat me upright and smiled down at me. It hid no malice and was the type whose equal I had seen only once before. “Won’t you drop your barriers and show me yours?”

 

 

I knocked on the door. “Ratio?” There was no answer so I knocked again. “Ratio, are you okay?” Still no answer. “Right! I’m coming in! If you’re in the middle of changing this is on you!”

 

I opened the door to find Ratio sitting at the end of the bed, her back turned to me and her head drooped forward looking down at the dress in her hands. “Ratio, did you not hear me knock?” I moved closer. “Ratio can you stop igno-“ I stopped mid-motion. For whatever reason Ratio was crying to herself and my mind quickly shifted gears. I covered the distance between us in a second, pulled up beside her and leaned her head against my shoulder while extending my hand which she took and entwined in her own. If I had realised this was what Miss meant when she said Ratio needed me, I’d have forgone the knocking. Alas, I was here now.

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

“Hey! None of that,” I instructed. “Not with me sis. You’re allowed to cry; star knows I’ve done more than my fair share!” I joked, flashing her a grin and was rewarded with a slight smile for my efforts. “Want to talk about it?”

 

Ratio took an unsteady deep breath and then slowly let it out. “I’m regretting my decision. There are going to be so many people watching me, all waiting for me to make a mistake. I’ve danced in front of people before, but never on a stage as large as this.”

 

I emphasised with the girl and wondered how much of her anxiety was her own, and how much had been forced onto her by the original. My mind quickly delved into tangents, one of them being how close were Ratio and I in terms of identity. I locked those tangents away and told myself I’d address them later. For now, my sister needed me.

 

“I’ve seen your videos.” Ratio looked at me confused. “Miss showed me earlier when she informed me we’d be going out to watch you tonight.” The confusion ceased. “As I was saying. I’ve seen your videos and honestly, you’re really good. No, that’s putting it lightly. Sis, you’re amazing; more than amazing!”

 

“That was practice, but out there I know I’ll freeze up, or make a mistake. I just know it!”

 

“Ratio. Look at me.” She turned to face me. “Do you believe Miss would let you dance if she thought you weren’t ready? Is the compact the type of place where people would laugh at you as opposed to encourage you?”

 

“No.” she agreed, much to my relief. In truth, I had no idea if either of those statements were true.

 

“Of course not!” I insisted. “You’ve been training hard for this. Honestly, I’m amazed! I can’t imagine many people can master dancing while simultaneously putting someone as complicated and needy as me back together,” I teased.

 

Ratio gave a small laugh and then looked at me with serious eyes. “I’m sorry. If I had spent less time practising and more time with you, maybe I could have saved more of who you were.”

 

“No!” I yelled, more than a little outraged. “I’m not having that! We both know you did the best you could. From what I hear you were already pushing yourself far past your limit. I’m glad Miss stopped you when she did, if anything happened to you…” I trailed off. “You’re far more than I deserve,” I said, my voice quiet and shaky. “I won’t let you blame yourself.” Ratio stammered in denial but I cut her off. “Sis, I mean it. I will march into that room, find Miss and sell my soul to her if it means she’ll help you overcome that train of thought.”

 

Ratio looked at me dumbfounded, tears swelling up in her eyes again. “You’d do that for me?” she asked.

 

I took my free hand and bapped her on the forehead. “And more. You did wonderfully and I wouldn’t be half the person I was today without you.” I pecked her on the cheek. “I love you, sis.”

 

“I love you too” she beamed and the two of us embraced in a long heartfelt hug. “I love you as well Mistress.”

 

To say my soul left my body wouldn’t be an understatement. I practically flew off the end of the bed and towards the floor in shock, taking Ratio with me. Fortunately, we were both caught before hitting the ground.

 

“You have got to stop sneaking up on me like that!” I yelled. “Stars! How do you even move that quietly, you’re like 11 ft tall!”

 

Ratio burst out with laughter. Not just through her body but every audible device in our unit. Her laughter played through the TV, the alarm clock, and the little stereos ordained on the walls. If I wasn’t so overcome with raw emotion, I’d have stopped twice to think about that.

 

While Ratio was giggling away Miss leant down. “You did well. Thank you for taking care of your pinnate and proving to me that you can,” she whispered. There was no gloating present. No condescending look on her face. No, this was genuine praise and the vine petting my head felt warmer than usual. She smiled, gave one final pat and then removed the vine, placing me back on the ground while she bundled Ratio into a protective hold. Ratio’s giggling quickly died down into needy whimpering and when a moan escaped her lips I decided to remove myself from the room, not entirely comfortable with the scene taking place. Upon my exit, I found a device with my name on it; booting to life at my touch and displaying a screen with lots of robotic designs. I swiped, each bringing a new design ranging anywhere from a full synthetic humanistic body to some more exotic designs, such as animals with genuine fur, or constructs with angelic wings. I started drafting sketches.

 

 

Around 5 hours had passed and while long they were not particularly detailed. Ratio and Miss spent most of the time together in the bedroom doing who knows what. I can’t say I was particularly off-put by this; after all, Ratio had needs of her own and I was happy provided she was happy. Still, it felt strange having some personal space for once. It was lonelier than I remember.

 

Eventually, we made plans to leave for Ratio’s big event. Miss had informed me that we had a private booth to watch the performance and that I could invite one other person to join us. My first candidate was Lucia, but after some thought, I decided I wanted to invite Benjamin. Despite what you may think my reasons were relatively pure; I simply wanted to apologise for my part to play in his brother’s death. If I didn’t address that guilt, I felt it would start to simmer into a much darker force.

 

Of course, Miss was hesitant and voiced her concerns, however, after listening to my reasoning she came around. My secret weapon? I told Miss that if I was in danger she could swoop in and save me. Okay, I worded it a bit more extravagantly than that, but the result was the same.

 

We also undertook one other event worthy of note. Curious? You’ll find out before the chapter is through.

 

The four of us sat in a booth closest to the central stage in a large colosseum. The stage itself was circular and must have been at least 20 metres (~65 feet) in diameter. Each booth could fit around 15 Terrans of average size comfortably. Miss had informed me that they retrofitted each booth ahead of time to be perfectly suited to its occupant’s needs. For us, that meant we had a private fridge with lots of tasty treats, two large Affini-sized seats, and two large Terran-sized ones. In total the colosseum could fit just under 300 booths and tonight, it was looking like a full house. Miss and Mr Thuirum sat to one side, while Benjamin and I sat close, but still far enough for some privacy. Well, privacy as far as the Affini are concerned.

 

The conversation between Ben and I started awkwardly, with neither knowing how to address the events of yesterday. Naturally, I brought up his brother, asking less than delicate questions. From Ben’s account, the fault lay with certain parts not being manufactured up to critical standards, and while I was happy to hear it wasn’t my design that had led to numerous deaths, I still felt remorse for the lives lost unnecessarily in the name of cutting costs. To his credit, Ben insisted throughout that he harboured no ill-will towards me and didn’t blame me for what had happened. I confess, I had cried in his arms that night, not bawling, but gently; in the manner of someone letting go of a strong emotional weight might. I suppose while I’m on the subject of confessing I should add one more detail; I stayed in his arms for the rest of the show. But enough about that! Tonight, was about Ratio.

 

She was beautiful. I realise I use that word a lot, but she was truly beautiful. The play was divided into two parts. First and the longer of the two was a collective assembly of dancers that told a story of loss and sadness. There are no words that I could use that would capture the mastery of the performance I had witnessed. I felt emotions that I didn’t know existed being torn out of me, put on display for the world and then bundled up and gently passed back. The entire audience was silent and enthralled, which included the two Affini sitting to my right. Then, when it ended, there were tears; some of sadness, others of happiness and the applause was thunderous. The interval started, ran and grew close to ending; soon the second story would be told. While I was excited, I was also a little worried. Previously Ratio had been the centrepiece surrounded by her friends; now, she would be alone. Well… not entirely alone.

 

“Are you ready?” Miss asked.

 

“I am,” I replied confidently.

 

Miss nodded and turned to face Benjamin. “Little one, I’ll be needing my floret back.” On the surface, the comment seemed to be one with roots in humour, and perhaps I’m overthinking this, but I could have sworn there was an air of possessiveness masked behind it.

 

Benjamin gave an easy laugh. “She’s yours!” he said, removing his hold. I was picked up by vines and brought towards Miss. “Try not to miss me too much,” he winked. I stuck my tongue out which had the effect of making his grin wider.

 

Vines cocooned around me, keeping me tight against Miss’s chest. “Close your eyes and we’ll begin.” I did. “See you soon,” Miss said, planting a kiss on my head before my senses turned black.

 

[Zeitha Everfell]: Hi!

[Ratio Everfell]: You came!

[Zeitha Everfell]: Of course!
[Zeitha Everfell]: I promised, didn’t I?
[Zeitha Everfell]: How are you feeling?

[Ratio Everfell]: Nervous

[Zeitha Everfell]: Don’t be!
[Zeitha Everfell]: Your performance earlier was amazing, everyone thought so
[Zeitha Everfell]: You should have seen Miss’s face, she was so proud of you
[Zeitha Everfell]: I, was proud of you
[Zeitha Everfell]: I still am

[Ratio Everfell]: That makes me happy
[Ratio Everfell]: :3
[Ratio Everfell]: How are you feeling?

[Zeitha Everfell]: I’m not sure
[Zeitha Everfell]: I’m no stranger to feeling like a passenger in my own body, but this is an entirely other experience
[Zeitha Everfell]: I don’t think I’m ever going to get used to this, though I’m happy

[Ratio Everfell]: Happy?

[Zeitha Everfell]: Mhm!
[Zeitha Everfell]: I finally understand how you felt back in the suit

[Ratio Everfell]: And that makes you happy?

[Zeitha Everfell]: By itself no; but I feel whole again
[Zeitha Everfell]: We should do this more often

[Ratio Everfell]: YES!!

[Zeitha Everfell]: And do you want to have a night with just us two sometime soon?

[Ratio Everfell]: YES!!

[Zeitha Everfell]: ><
[Zeitha Everfell]: It’s a date!

[Ratio Everfell]: I can’t wait!

“Curtains are up in 5 minutes! Places everyone!”

[Ratio Everfell]: That’s my cue
[Ratio Everfell]: Don’t leave my side?

[Zeitha Everfell]: Never!

 

[Ratio Everfell]: I can’t do this!

[Zeitha Everfell]: You can
[Zeitha Everfell]: I’m here
[Zeitha Everfell]: I won’t let anything bad happen to you

[Ratio Everfell]: But there are so many eyes!

[Zeitha Everfell]: You’ve danced for them before, why is this any different?

[Ratio Everfell]: Because I’m alone!

[Zeitha Everfell]: You’re not alone
[Zeitha Everfell]: I’m here with you

I could feel Ratio’s anxiety building and her reluctance.

[Zeitha Everfell]: Let’s do this then
[Zeitha Everfell]: Look up there
[Zeitha Everfell]: 5 to the right, 3 up from the bottom

[Ratio Everfell]: I’ve found you

[Zeitha Everfell]: Great!
[Zeitha Everfell]: Focus on me
[Zeitha Everfell]: Heck, focus on that ridiculous colour combination if it makes you feel better

[Ratio Everfell]: I like it!

[Zeitha Everfell]: No one in this universe likes a purple-green combo
[Zeitha Everfell]: I refuse to accept it!

[Ratio Everfell]: I do!
[Ratio Everfell]: What do they mean?

[Zeitha Everfell]: I think the purple represents pride
[Zeitha Everfell]: That’s for you btw

[Ratio Everfell]: ////////////////

[Zeitha Everfell]: And that shade of green/yellow is-
[Zeitha Everfell]: …
[Zeitha Everfell]: …
[Zeitha Everfell]: …

[Ratio Everfell]: What?

[Zeitha Everfell]: It’s not important

[Ratio Everfell]: Tell me!!

[Zeitha Everfell]: It’s
[Zeitha Everfell]: Not
[Zeitha Everfell]: Important

[Ratio Everfell]: If you don’t tell me I’ll get super upset!

[Zeitha Everfell]: That’s low…
[Zeitha Everfell]: It means I’m happy and comfortable

[Ratio Everfell]: Seed

[Zeitha Everfell]: Pardon?

[Ratio Everfell]: Nothing~

[Zeitha Everfell]: Right…
[Zeitha Everfell]: Well, you seem to be feeling better
[Zeitha Everfell]: Ready to get out there?

[Ratio Everfell]: No

[Zeitha Everfell]: Still anxious about dancing for them?

[Ratio Everfell]: Mhm

[Zeitha Everfell]: Then don’t
[Zeitha Everfell]: Block them out
[Zeitha Everfell]: Block everyone out
[Zeitha Everfell]: Focus only on me
[Zeitha Everfell]: Dance only for me
[Zeitha Everfell]: Can you do that?

[Ratio Everfell]: I…
[Ratio Everfell]: I can do that

 

I’m not going to pretend that I know what I’m talking about when it comes to dancing, as mine is a mind that sold itself to science. So instead, I will tell you about the audience’s reaction and you can determine Ratio’s performance for yourself.

 

From start to finish no one moved, some barely breathed. It was like her movements were casting a spell and no one was safe from its influence. By the time she had finished some were sweating, others were leaning forward, but all had eyes glued to the stage. She gave a modest bow and waited for the audience’s reply. The silence was deafening and stretched out far longer than I thought was fair. 10 seconds passed, then 20 and then 30. Eventually, it was broken by a slow clap in the second wing. This clap was followed by another and then another before rising to a crescendo twice as loud as the earlier performance. Some florets tried to imitate her dance and others bawled holding each other close. The audience had spoken and they loved it. Ratio gave another modest bow and made her way backstage, a huge grin on her face. She was greeted by fellow performers and friends alike and showered in praise. I took this moment to silently slip away.

 

I returned to my body, my senses overwhelming and gave a tired moan. Miss responded to my presence instantly, fawning over me and ensuring I was okay. “How are you feeling?” she asked.

 

“Exhausted. That was a lot,” I replied, glad that I was cocooned to combat the weakness I felt.

 

The vines surrounding me loosened, allowing me to stretch with Miss’s assistance. “You did very well. I’m proud of the both of you,” Miss beamed, bringing a vine to pet me.

 

I gave a tired laugh, a word of thanks and then leant into her vines and closed my eyes.