"And done!" I had just gained unlawful access to the Office of Transitional Neoxenoveterinary Archaeobureaucracy's record system. From the way Mistress seemed to subtly calm, I did it right. This was, after all, a very important record system and we'd be in a dirt ton of trouble if I fucked this up. I, of course, wasn't going to touch any of the data. That would be leaving evidence and breaking half of the golden rule she established way back when. Don't get caught. Also, I think the affini would be upset which would break the other half of the rule. Don't hurt anyone.

 

I got a head pat from my roommate and my girlfriend rubbed my back. It turns out Mistress set up my desk area so instead of the chair, we could just sit in her lap cuddling. She was sitting cross-legged on the ground so I was still around the right height for my keyboard.

 

Mistre-my roommate had been teaching more networking stuff and I decided I was ready to try something with a lot of security unlike the network nodes the affini set up to be hacked. "You did beautifully, petal. I'm very proud of you." I cleared my throat as she pet me. "And you are a very good girl." She proceeded to then stealthily back me out of the records system because I was done with it. The whole exercise was just to see if I could do it. Sure she was basically guiding me through it, but I still understood what I was doing and could potentially replicate it.

 

I relaxed into the praise of my affini. It wasn't like I was going to be able to focus on more lessons after she called me a good girl. At least not for a while.

 

Eventually, Nora spoke up. "So princess, you have like eight monitors, why do two of them have live feeds from public cameras?" She made me glance over at said feeds off to the side.

 

"Uh… I've just, always done that for uh reasons…" I had been doing that since before I got my system admin job. I thought about it a few times over the years, but I never really had a satisfying answer as to why I felt the need to watch people act normally in the outside world. I didn't like people. Watching people going about their daily lives should have been like something I hated.

 

"Want to talk about it?" She sounded really gentle when she said that. My confusion had me bringing up my program to access the optics of her synth body and bring up a display of myself. Looking at myself should help but before I could access it the program crashed. Or should I say, one of those two killed the application.

 

"Flower, why were you accessing little Nora's optics?" Said the infinitely patient and kind roommate and caretaker I was sitting on.

 

I restarted the application and tried it again. "I wanted to see myself." My voice was trembling. I brought up the feed and saw myself through Nora's eyes. I was my usual beautiful self, wearing my normal black dress, necklace, and glasses. Only my lip was quivering and my eyes looked a bit watery. I looked upset and I didn't know why. "I shouldn't be sad… Can you make me not sad?"

 

Mistress turned me around to face her. "Flower, what is hurting you? I'll give you something, but it is important that we know what's wrong to help you."

 

"I-I don't know. I feel like I should know, but the stuff you did to my head makes it hard to think about it clearly. Can you just make the feelings go away? Please?" She was hesitating. I had to push her a bit. "Please Mistress?" I played the role of the begging pet she wanted to turn me into. It was her weak spot, and I didn't like to use it. She wanted the genuine thing and I wasn't that.

 

My roommate slid the needle in and my mood cleared up, but my thoughts got hazy too. I could make out that I was being held by my two favorite sophonts, but beyond that I lost track of everything around me in the haze. There was no need to worry. The xenodrug prevented me from worrying, but I still didn't need to. My Mistress would take care of me no matter what.

 

I was brought back up sometime later while we were on the couch. Nora wasn't there at least not in physical body.

 

My affini roommate looked down on me. "My beautiful beloved petal, are you feeling better?"

 

I did a typing gesture on a vine.

 

[SystemLurkerPrincess]: yup

[SystemLurkerPrincess]: But I guess being out of it like that isn't my favorite

[SystemLurkerPrincess]: could you keep me thinking next time?

 

"Flower, I'm hoping there won't be a next time. I'm your Mistress, it's my job to look after your emotional well-being." Oh, she mistook what I said before.

 

[SystemLurkerPrincess]: I just called you that so you'd drug me

[SystemLurkerPrincess]: I'm not a pet

[SystemLurkerPrincess]: You're my roommate, not my owner or Mistress

 

She appeared genuinely upset when I typed that. It hurt to see her like that. I-I was breaking the rule. I was hurting someone even if it wasn't with hacking. Worse, it was someone I loved. Someone I cared so deeply about that the mere idea of hurting her caused my heart to ache.

 

Tears welled up in my eyes. Hurting her made me sad. I was a selfless woman, who was adequate and nice and great. I couldn't even think the right words. She prevented me from doing it. The affini had pruned the self-deprecation from my brain and now I couldn't be upset with myself correctly.

 

My breath hastened and tears flowed. She was going to abandon me. I was driving her off again with mean actions. Fear took hold, and the thought of being separated from her felt like death. I ruined everything I cared about.

 

"Shhhh, little one. It's okay. I'm here." Mistress pulled me into a hug and slipped me something. A chemically forced calm took me. The sadness remained under the weighted emotional blanket that attempted to send it off to sleep. "And here is a little something so we can hopefully have a proper talk." I failed to notice any changes from the second injection. "Now Aster, what upset you just now?"

 

"I made you sad." The words came out as I willed them too instead of sitting in my brain space to be typed. "I-I hurt you again and now I'm going to be alone like before."

 

Mistress's vines coiled around me until she held me in an all-consuming possessive manner. "My sweet beloved little flower, I will never allow you to be alone again. You do not get a say in that."

 

"But I hurt you. I manipulated you earlier and then admitted to it. I knew how much you enjoy hearing me call you Mistress and used it against you. I know saying that you're not my Mistress made you sad. I-I wish you hadn't forced me to call you that." Tears came despite the placid emotional state I found myself in.

 

"Petal no, asking for help from me is never manipulation. You did nothing wrong. Asserting your little stance on independence was adorable and what is the terran word… bittersweet. I love seeing you enjoy your little game, but I didn't see much enjoyment from you when you said such." One of her vines gave me chin scritches. "I am truly surprised to hear you are dissatisfied with being made to call me Mistress. I thought you would enjoy it like all of the other changes. If it is upsetting you I'll undo it, but can I ask why? Everything I know of you indicates you should very much enjoy it."

 

I rallied my focus and began to verbally construct my answer. "I hate it because I don't want to hurt you. Calling you that is hollow because I don't mean it and it bothers me to get your hopes up like that. I love you. I love you so much and I really don't want to hurt you just because I can't be the pet you want me to be."

 

"What makes you think you can't be my wonderful adorable smart and beloved little floret?" She asked.

 

"Because I can't be. I don't want to be a pet. I'm scared to be one." I shifted my hands to attempt to find something tactile to interact with and her hold loosened as her vines wrapped around them and gave me something to fidget with.

 

Mistress tilted her head inquisitively. "You're afraid of what dear? You know I'd never hurt you right? Do you not trust me?"

 

The first question was hard. Really hard. So I started with the easiest and worked my way up. "I know you won't hurt me. I trust you. I trust you a ton. I wouldn't sit back and let you play with my mind if I didn't. I'm just scared. I don't understand what being a pet is. I just know it's something I'm not supposed to be. I don't want to be another floret so doped up she can't move or think on her own."

 

"Flower, I'd never take away your adorable little mind like that. At least never for very long. You know I don't do that with Nora. You've seen how we interact. What don't you understand?"

 

"No." I would have shouted it if I was mentally capable of putting that much feeling into anything. "I haven't seen you two interact. You both do your secret mental chats all the time and I feel so lost and left out. I even tried intercepting some of your messages and the file format didn't even work on my machine because it can only be read by mental interfaces. At least with other florets and affini I can watch them interact even if I don't get it."

 

That seemed to shock her enough that she didn't have an immediate rebuttal. They hadn't been subtle about their ability to just silently communicate around me leaving me out of stuff. "We're sorry we made you feel left out. I have frequent talks with little Nora about things you have made it clear to us that you don't want to know about. I'd try to make an effort to talk with you more in place of that, but you'll be getting your implants soon enough and then you'll be able to join us."

 

"What do you mean things I don't want to know about?" I thought about it more and remembered. "The hypnotic stuff… Nora said I begged you to make me forget and stay unaware."

 

"Precisely." Mistress said. "We keep that from you because you want us to. I am currently limited with how well I can target memory erasures, and with what I can make you overlook with my class-H use." She then switched tracks. "We are getting off topic. You said you were scared to be a pet because you do not understand it. What do you wish to know?"

 

"Uh…" That was way too broad of a question for me to think about. Especially because I had a slight cognitive impairment from whatever she used. At least it sort of felt like it. "I don't know. I just don't get things sometimes. Even if I know the same stuff people do. Tech is easy, I get tech. I don't get relationship stuff. People stuff. Affini cultural stuff."

 

I took a deep breath. "What does it mean to you to have me as a pet?" It felt like it'd be easier to understand what she thinks, than to figure it out on my own. Nora basically walked me through the concepts of romance and being girlfriends. She figuratively and almost literally held my hand the entire way.

 

Being led by Mistress was a bit deeper than with Nora. I could feel her like an instinct. An innate sense of what she needed from me in an immediate physical sense, and sometimes an emotional one. I could lean into it or out of it. I had been skimming the edge of following that instinct for a while. I didn't even know I had it until a few days ago.

 

Mistress brushed her hand through my hair, but light enough to keep me from losing myself. "Little one. What you mean to me as my floret, is your love, your admiration, your trust, your obedience, and your happiness. I want to possess all of them. I want to own your little mind, to be responsible for every action you take, and every thought you have. I want to use all of that to make you so happy that you can't possibly cry or be sad as you were today."

 

She was still holding me possessively with all those little vines. "While it would be so cute to have you be as adorable and helpless as those thoughtless florets you've spied on. Your mind fascinates me, as does little Nora's. You are both so very bright in your own ways. I want to teach you, to gift you with all the knowledge you crave. I want to enable your dreams in any form they take."

 

"All I need from you, is to let go and let yourself be mine. I could make you. It would be so easy, but where would the fun in that be?" Oh, she got the biggest, most insidiously evil grin on her face. "Do you want to be my pet?" She gave me another injection and the emotional blanket and fog cleared.

 

I could feel the word. It would be so easy to follow that instinct and just say yes. Mistress wanted me to say yes. I knew that at least part of me desperately wanted to say yes, but another part said no, Aster shouldn't. It wouldn’t let me. Aster was not supposed to be a pet. Aster didn’t deserve to be a pet. Aster was supposed to be able to take care of herself. 

 

Cyathea made the point time and time again that I should just let myself be a pet and I flat out refused. I demanded and begged. When I could do little else I managed to accomplish two things. I could use a computer, and I could remain an independent sophont. To fail now would be disgraceful.

 

I was Aster and if some evil insidious scheming beautiful loving affini wanted to make me her pet, then she was going to have to fucking do it herself. I wouldn't submit. She'd have to make me. I wasn't a floret yet.

 

"No."

 

For a brief flicker, I felt her disappointment, and a flicker later I felt her tremendous joy. "Flower, what a fun little tune you're dancing to. Have your fun with it, but know that it is a gift from me. I'm allowing you that resistance and I can take it away whenever I wish." The thorny maw behind her lips showed a little. A hint of the creature I saw in our scene. Mistress was a predator and she fed on submission.

 

I shivered a bit, both from the memory and from the idea she was letting me resist her. Regardless of what my kinky brain was on about, I wasn't a pet. Not yet. Not until my roommate made me. Still, I'd love to force Mistress to make me a pet just to beat her at her own game. For the first time, I felt like I understood the game we were playing. Affini never fought fair, she waited until so far into the game to let me know what we were even playing. I was going to win this time…

 

My thoughts hitched. Wouldn't that just be submitting with extra steps? Hmmm, no because she'd be forcing me and that's not submitting. Yea, that seemed right. Even if she forced me to be a floret I wouldn't be submitting. Definitely, 100%. Also, I'd have no choice in the pet thing, so it wouldn't matter if part of me didn't like it.

 

The flicker of the true evil mastermind roommate that ensnared me faded. Mistress, the kind and caring affini, took her place. "So, my beloved little Aster, we still need to talk about your breakdowns. Do you think you can handle that?" I knew that tone. It sounded faintly like a challenge.

 

"I-I can handle it." I shook my body a little and got her to release me from the overly possessive hold. I remained in her lap. My roommate didn't give me the option on that.

 

"Perfect. Let's work our way back. You don't want to call me Mistress because you don't want to hurt me. The idea you had upset you. Do you need me to undo that command?"

 

The thought rolled over in my mind. "Yes, if I say Mistress it should be because I mean it." I could feel that she was in agreement, or rather I agreed with her. We agreed with each other? I didn't know how affini stuff worked, but I had an inkling I wasn't the one influencing her.

 

A familiar xenodrug and familiar words dragged me deep and down.

 

…

 

I fluttered my eyes open. Mistress was holding me. Wait, Digitalis was holding me! I smiled for a brief moment before it fell to a frown. It was what I wanted, so why did it feel like a hollow victory? This was almost like gaining my independence and aloneness before. Something I thought I wanted but… didn't.

 

"Hey, Digi-" It felt wrong to say. It was the wrong word on my lips. "-talis."

 

She knew. Mistress or Digitalis knew. She wore that knowing but subtle smile. "Welcome back, flower. Are you happy now?"

 

No. "Yes."

 

"Perfect, and if you ever change your mind, you only need to ask." Oh she was laying it on thick.

 

I pouted. "Of course, roommate, but I'm definitely happier like this. Pet me." Demands aren't very pet-like.

 

"Well my beautiful flower, how about we wait until after we discuss what happened at the beginning of this." Digitalis wanted to pry into that still.

 

I scratched an itch underneath my necklace causing it to jingle. "Can I get pets while we talk about it?" I compromised.

 

Her vines folded my legs under me and withdrew. "You will receive pets after we finish resolving the issue. Now be a good girl and talk." That command sent a little shiver down my spine.

 

"Well, I got worried when Nora sounded extra gentle, and it wasn't until I saw how sad I looked that I noticed what I was feeling." There, I explained it and I tilted my head to receive head pats. I earned them.

 

"Not yet little one, why did thinking about watching people on those camera feeds upset you?"

 

"I don't know." It was the truth. I didn't know why I felt that way. Apparently, I didn't understand my feelings and desires as well as I thought. Maybe… My mind was twisted up on itself. Too many schemes. Too many feelings.

 

Mistress, or uh. Fine. Mistress had a patient look and then I felt a tiny shift. Like whenever Nora messaged her something interesting. My mind took focus on her words the moment she was about to say them. "Little Nora had a wonderful idea. You seem to be able to process your thoughts and feelings better when you're doing your little roleplays. For this one, I will be the… empress, and you shall be my court… sorceress." Okay Nora had to be feeding her those words.

 

Regardless, Mistress's posture became more regal. Digitalis always had an air of superiority but it morphed into an air of majesty. She was more than beautiful enough to be an empress. "My sorceress, you've been scrying the people of our kingdom again. You will tell me why you've been draining the imperial budget in pursuit of this hobby of yours."

 

I fell into the role. "Um your majesty, I-I was just making sure the common folk were as prosperous under your reign as they should be…" No that wasn't why. That was what the sorceress told herself was the reason, but it was her excuse.

 

"I have bards on every corner. The documents have shown that we are in an era of prosperity. Walking outside these walls would show you that truth. Why are you scrying our citizens?" Dirt, when did she get so good at roleplaying? The empress gave a command and the sorceress had to obey.

 

"I-I'm jealous of them. The way they can go where they wish. I'm stuck within the palace. I love the palace. It is beautiful and more than any could ask for… It should feel like a palace and not a prison. Looking at them lets me feel like I can do what they do and… step outside should I wish to." The sorceress had lived her life imprisoned in any home she found herself. The tower she first studied in, the cottage she claimed as her own, and now the empress's grand palace.

 

The empress in her glory and wisdom considered the words given to her. "I could take you with me on my trips, or perhaps even order you to step outside these walls." Her refrain from using commands was intentional and deliberate. She knew that neither was the answer. The empress was guiding me through my hang ups with leaving the palace.

 

"I fear for myself beyond the walls. Commands won't fix that. No matter how peaceful the kingdom or plentiful the guards, I won't feel safe to step out. I am of fae blood. I do not fully understand the thoughts and whims and dangers of the masses. Worse, I feel they'd hate me for it. I am sensitive to animosity both actual and perceived." The sorceress's heritage of birth left her unable to understand the fully human people of the kingdom. Their ways felt as alien if not more so than the empress's elven people.

 

"You doubt my ability to keep you safe?" The empress asked.

 

I reeled. The empress should be able to keep the sorceress safe, she had all the power in the kingdom. "Not all threats can be blocked by the shields and swords of your guards. As the bards say, words are the mightiest weapons of all."

 

The empress cowed me under her gaze. Then I felt a shift. The spirits of her ancestors gifted her with some knowledge. "My sorceress, my dear beloved one, you are not the only one adept in the arts of magic. I know far more than you could ever hope to. I know how to shield you from the pains you feel. I have done so time and again. Tell me, since you have come to live with me have you felt that fear within these walls?"

 

"No your majesty, but there are no threats within the palace."

 

"There have been, and yet I have protected you from them. I have taken the pain away and soothed your memories. I can take away the fear. I can shield you from the vitriol of those who do not know what an amazing servant you are." I believed her. The empress could and would do that for her beloved sorceress. The sorceress was never here to function as a servant. The sorceress was in the palace and not her own home because of the love the two shared.

 

That power, love and regal splendor was what made the sorceress follow the empress. What better place could there be in the entire empire than right here at the whims and mercy of such a glorious being. "Please?" The sorceress could only beg her majesty.

 

"As you wish little one." Digitalis dropped the act and snapped me back to being an independent sophont on her lap. She then gave me lots of head pats. "You were a very good girl, and as a treat I'm taking you out to dinner."

 

Before I could tremble at the thought, my roommate gave me something new. The xenodrug made me relax. I couldn't feel that weird fear anxiety thing at the thought of going outside. I knew it should be there, but I was just… okay. I think I liked it. "What did you give me?" As I heard the words slur from my mouth I got an inkling.

 

Mistress scooped me up into a cradling hold. "The class-E you should have started months ago. Now, let's go out to dinner. Just you and me."

 

As she carried me to the door a message popped up on my glasses.

 

[GhostExMachina]: Have fun on your date! 💖💖💖

 

"D-Date?!" I uttered the words in disbelief. Nora knew this stuff better than me, if she thought it was a date then… oh, OH. This was my first date. I didn't even get all dressed up, or I guess I'm kinda dressed up but if it was a date I needed to dress fancy to impress Mistress.

 

The affini hummed. "You did want to date me did you not?"

 

I was still nestled in her arms. "I mean uh yea, but like I-I've never been on a uh date or anything… Does this mean you're my girlfriend?"

 

"Does it? Does this mean you're my pet?" That sly towering teasing evil bully of xeno.

 

"N-No, I'm not a pet. Dates are for like girlfriends not pets." I wouldn't let her fool me this time.

 

Digi stepped beyond the threshold and I beheld sunlight for the first time in nearly nine months. It was awful. Even with my glasses auto dimming it, the sunlight still got around the edges of my glasses and was too bright. I had to close my right eye just to not get overstimulated. There were also sounds, and a breeze and everything was different. So many things were moving and making noise.

 

Thankfully my affini companion shifted some of her flower petals and vines to give me a small canopy that protected me from the everything. She even placed one of my fidget things into my hands that she brought with her.

 

Her actions took me aback. Mistress knew what I needed before I even knew. The affini understood me too well, but she used all of that knowledge about me exactly right… except for the bullying. There was something really uh, attractive about a woman plant xeno as competent as her. I loved her so much.

 

A few affini stopped and took note of me, usually with gushing coos. I curled up when they did.   I wasn't scared, I couldn't be, but I still felt weird about being witnessed by strangers. At least they were affini and not like humans. Humans were way worse.

 

Mistress Digitalis stopped to let an affini pet me. I was really nervous until their hand touched my head and I started getting head pats and good girls. They did make the mistake of referring to me as a pet and floret. That had to be corrected.

 

"I-I'm n-not uh, like a-a pet or uh, f-floret." I wanted to add the independent sophont part but talking was hard. Especially, under all the praise and affection.

 

The strange Conifer-like affini quirked a smile. "But petal, look at how well trained you are. And your adorable little collar even calls you a floret."

 

I pouted. "I-I'm not trained, and I'm uh not wearing a collar. The only th-thing around my neck is uh this necklace and it doesn't call me like a f-floret."

 

Digitalis informed the stranger of something in their alien language. The mysterious xeno then asked, "Can I know the name of this adorable independent sophont I'm talking to?"

 

"Uh, A-Aster… Aster L-Lutea, Second Floret. She/her. Um, what's your name?" That's what normal people did, they like exchanged names or something. Gah, I hoped I didn't people wrong with the nice affini who pet me.

 

The affini stranger looked delighted and shared his name and pronouns too, and we parted ways as I was being taken on a d-date.

 

It was really hard to be confident and awesome like normal when I was basically clinging to Digi the whole time. While I had wanted to go outside and not feel terrified, I still didn't like it. The outdoors were inferior to home. At least I proved that I could go outside if I wanted to and like actually uh handle it… under the effects of a xenodrug.

 

We arrived at a fancy restaurant. The continued existence of businesses in a post-scarcity world confused me. Like these people didn't need to work anymore, why show up? "Mis-Digi, why are people like working?"

 

Digitalis walked us over to a table. "Because my lovely little one, they want to. Every sophont is different and many take great pride in doing things for others without compensation or because of institutionalized coercion and necessity. Others need to feel useful and with purpose to be happy."

 

She placed me in the comfy seat across from her. Her vines delicately positioned my hair to not tangle or get sat on as Mistress set me down. My feet dangled above the ground as the seat was sized for affini like an oddly large amount of things were. It made me feel tiny and helpless, but I knew Mistress would help without me even needing to ask.

 

My affini's gleeful gaze fell upon me and I blushed. She was so big and beautiful. The way she arranged every one of her vines was amazing. Her strange inhuman eyes captured me and I just watched her. Mistress was so much. So grand, beautiful, perfect. Every movement she made, every sound that came from her enraptured me.

 

The sound of her voice reverberated in my mind. "We'll both have water, petal." Mistress was looking away from me off to the side. I'd look to see what could draw the gaze of a goddess, but I was still taking her in.

 

"Enjoying yourself my beloved flower?" Something about the way she intoned that snapped me out of my cycle of admiration.

 

I looked down. "N-No. You're just too pretty."

 

A vine stroked my cheek and I whimpered. "My beautiful helpless flower, I also find you too pretty. Would you like to be my pet?"

 

"Y-" Dirt, she almost got me. Gah! This evil temptress was messing with my head so much I could barely pay attention to anything that wasn't her. I steeled my resolve enough that I could correctly say, "No. uh… Did you give me something other than the class-E?"

 

"Perhaps I did, or maybe I didn't." Digitalis’s eyes drank me in for a second. "You might have a class-C in your system."

 

Before I could even ask what those do, a bit of text came up in front of me. I peeked over my glasses and yea it was AR stuff. I then finally read the thing and… oh the one that uh makes me want her. I already wanted her as like a girlfriend, as a life partner. The xenodrug must be the thing making me feel like I'm falling deeply in love with her for the first time every time I glanced at her stunning visage.

 

I could ask her to undo it, but I don't think I could do that without sounding like I was begging.

 

At some point, I managed to get so lost in her I failed to notice the glass of water she held in front of me. My mouth opened at the right time and I sipped the drink before she set it back down. Her vines did those tappy things that had me open and close my mouth…

 

The stranger affini said I was trained. Oh, Oh no. She somehow had me acting like a trained pet already.

 

Mistress pulled my gaze up to her. Not physically but I felt that I was supposed to at that moment. "Aster what thought put that adorably silly smile on your face?"

 

Roots! I had been smiling at the idea of having been trained by her. She knew. I saw it. Her mind games were too much. Mistress had too much power and competence with it. She was breaking me.

 

"I won't submit. I'm not a pet." I grumbled without my usual level of conviction. "Stop bullying me."

 

"Never." She didn't even move her lips. It sounded like it came from earbuds in my head. Dangerous. This affini was dangerous and evil and scheming. The date was a trap. This whole thing was a setup to leave me extra vulnerable.

 

I tried to clench my fists to steel my resolve but that stupid class-E made it hard. My fingers were too relaxed and clumsy to tighten as much as I wanted. I wanted to dig my nails into my palm so the pain would give me clarity but I couldn't. I was helpless.

 

Food was placed in front of me along with utensils facing her, Digitalis. The fact I was out and at a restaurant on a date came back to me. I didn't remember ordering. My eyes spotted the cute maid server… Nora. My evil girlfriend was our server the whole time and I just didn't notice until now?

 

The digitized maid waved at me. "Hey Aster, are you enjoying your date?" That shit eating grin.

 

I pouted. "No… you two are bullying me."

 

"Would it help if you bit me?" Nora pulled her collar back as if inviting me to nibble on her for being a bully.

 

I flexed my fangs but Mistress's vines drew me back to facing my food where she had the steak cut and on a fork. She did her gesture things and next thing I knew I was eating very delicious food. My bully of a girlfriend walked off, but definitely continued still spying on us.

 

Mistress fed me while I sat there helplessly adrift in her mind games. She held one spoonful of mashed potatoes back. My mouth hung open with the food right in front of me. I sat there. I should just lean forward and take it but I remained. She somehow trained me to. I waited as the most wicked and terrible being in all the universe stared in glee at the sight of me waiting for my food, mouth open.

 

"Do you want to be my pet?"

 

I trembled and whimpered. She was doing this to me in public! Mistress wanted me to beg and I-I… The food entered my mouth and she made me chew and swallow. My affini hummed expectantly. She wanted something of me, a response. That pesky instinct was screaming at me to immediately and beggingly say yes.

 

I sank a fang into my lip with as much force as I could muster. Aster does not submit. S-She can't. I can't, but she was making me feel and do things. She admitted she could make me submit whenever she wanted, but I-I thought that was with hypnosis not-not this. Not whatever she'd been doing.

 

No response came from my mouth. It couldn't be trusted to say no. Instead, I was left with silence. The absence of a response was all I could muster in the face of this affini.

 

Nora came back and offered dessert and I pleaded with my eyes for Mistress to decline. I couldn't survive dessert. Mistress Digitalis knew it too. Her words to me echoed in my mind. My resistance was a gift from her, and she could take it away whenever she wished. I understood that now. She made me understand it.

 

"No thank you, we won't be having dessert. My pet and I should be getting home." Mistress's grin was devilish as her golden eyes drilled into me. "After all, she's getting her Haustoric Implant tomorrow."