"Ah- ahhhh..." Delta let out a soft groan into the shower as their Mistress brought them to climax with her fingers. This was after, of course, she'd had her own climax via hand job. Their Mistress pinned her hands around Delta, leaving them trapped against the cold, wet shower wall for her to do whatever she wanted to them. Not that it was a problem anymore. Delta was used to this by now. It had been about two weeks since they were bought, and for that short amount of time, they had gotten used to being their Mistress' property surprisingly quickly. She would come over nearly every night, fucking them every way they could imagine, and several they never could. They'd heard the term 'new property energy,' and they assumed that's what she had from buying them, whatever that meant.

    It wasn't really so bad. At least they got pampered occasionally - for example, a gift basket of soaps, shampoos and lotions - and they got to finish during sex, if she was feeling generous. Sometimes, they wondered about the outside world. What it would be like to know people other than their Mistress? What would it be like to be back in their old life? They tried to ignore those thoughts whenever they'd have them, though. It didn't do them any good, since there currently was no reliable way for them to escape. And, for that matter, they still weren't sure they wanted to.

    The thought of escape brought their mind to Kassandra. She had been pretty quiet lately. She'd occasionally come out when they were alone, and grill them on when and how they were planning to escape. Delta would respond I don't know yet, Kassandra, and then she'd disappear somewhere in the back of their mind in her frustration. It was good that she wasn't causing too much trouble anymore. Although, they could feel something building up inside her. A burning determination to get out. She was getting antsy, demanding they get on with her - or, rather, their - life. But every time Delta thought about leaving, they stopped. The thought brought dread at never being able to see their Mistress again, at how betrayed she would feel. Or maybe she would hunt them down, and treat them worse than she was for their rebellion, only to leave them out on the street again.

    Those thoughts plagued them in their uncomfortably large amount of free time. To push it off, they took daily hour-long runs, which their Mistress kept track of, and then they would spend the rest of the day watching TV or playing on the Nintendo Switch their Mistress had included when she was preparing their apartment. They were playing a lot of Pokken Tournament DX lately, and they liked to think they were pretty good at it... at least, as good as someone who never played a fighting game could be on their own. All that was to pass the time waiting for their Mistress to get there. They would sometimes make her dinner, then get themself ready with some of the clothes and makeup she got for them, and then she would sleep with them. It was a routine, and all things considered, routine was better than an unknown.

    Their routine on this day was, unfortunately, disrupted. "I'm not going to be around tonight," their Mistress casually mentioned as the two of them ate a breakfast that Delta had prepared.

    They turned around to her, a silent question rising to their lips. She wasn't going to be around? Well, what the hell were they going to do for the rest of the night, then? The idea of being completely alone instilled horror in them to a degree they hadn't expected. Dreading dying of boredom, just playing the same video game over and over again... although it would help them 'git gud,' as someone they'd played over Discord had said after seeing their pathetic efforts.

    "I have a business engagement tonight, and I need to be there. Keep yourself occupied. Do you understand?"

    Delta paused for a bit. "I- I understand, Mistress," they said, then paused. "Um... what is there to do for me to keep myself occupied?"

    Their Mistress shrugged as she drank another long sip of her coffee. "Decide that yourself. Take a walk around the city, see what there is to do. But don't," she turned to Delta, "stay over with anyone. Come back here as soon as you're done with whatever you decide to do. There's a GPS app on your phone if you get lost. Feel free to use my card for whatever you want, but don't go over... let's say $200. And if you make any friends, you are to obtain and then give me their names and contact information. I want a full report of your day at the end, via text. Am I clear?"

    "Um, yes, Mistress," they responded, stunned at the flood of orders. They blinked a few times as they processed what she said, then went back to polishing off the rest of their breakfast. 

    "And obviously, don't tell anyone about your... situation. We wouldn't want to alarm anyone, would we?"

    "No, Mistress."

    They ate in silence, basking in each other's presence in the room. After a while, their Mistress piped up again.

    "Come to think of it, I would love it if you did some creative projects during your time with me."

    Delta gave her a puzzled look.

    She chuckled. "Let me rephrase that. When I bought you, plaything, I bought all of you, including your productivity. Pick something or a few things to work on - a skill you have to refine, something new, whatever you want - and spend time each day working on it. I'll be tracking this as well. Understood?"

    "Uh... Yes, Mistress," they answered, still off balance. What would they want to do? There weren't many artistic things they were good at. Although maybe they were good at writing, or drawing. It might be nice to pick something else up. They weren't sure, though - there were a lot of options.

    "I have to go to work," she said suddenly, standing up. "Do the dishes today. Keep the apartment clean. I'll see you tomorrow."

    She gathered her belongings, lifted Delta's chin to give them a quick kiss on the lips, then headed out of their apartment. Delta was left alone in silence. They sat down on the couch, resolving to do the dishes later. They set a reminder on their phone for it, because they'd probably forget otherwise.

    They weren't alone for very long. A familiar voice piped up in their head.

    "Whole day to ourselves, huh?" Kassandra smirked. Delta laid back on the couch, not immediately responding to her. "Perfect to spend some time thinking of a way to escape. Ooh, we could tell someone what's going on, if we don't let her know. Maybe we can sue her for all her money, y'know?"

    Delta looked down silently. They had avoided having this conversation with Kassandra purposefully. And their reason for doing so was simple.

    They didn't want to leave anymore.

    "Kassandra, I..." Delta trailed off, unable to think of a good response to placate her. They fought with themself over what to say, and could only come up with something noncommittal. "Let's see who we meet today."

    "If we meet someone trustworthy, don't give their contact info away," Kassandra urged. "There must be someone who can get us out of this. Please, Delta. We've been here for weeks. It's time to leave."

    Delta let out a heavy sigh. "Okay, Kassandra. I'll try to think of something."

    "Good. Now, go do things. I know you'll figure out something."

    Kassandra disappeared after that, leaving Delta all alone again to tackle their tasks for the day. Creative projects, and something to do outside. It was still early in the morning, and if they went to sleep around 10 PM or so, like a normal person, they had around thirteen hours left in the day. Eventually, they decided to take a run rather than waste more time deliberating, without any real idea of where they were going. They usually circled the path by their apartment, but they supposed if they wanted to cover more ground, they could do a run around the city.

    Luckily, their Mistress had gotten them some practical workout clothes along with the fancy and the... revealing ones. Packing their phone, keys, and the credit card in their pocket, they took off, picking a random direction and heading that way - heading whatever way they wanted. This was their freedom. This was why they didn't want to leave. But Kassandra would never accept that.

~~

    Even though their apartment wasn't based in the main hub of the city, their run passed by many squares and corners with cool shops and lots of character. They did get some weird looks for their clothes - it didn't seem like this neighborhood would have people jogging through for the sights. Periodically, they checked their phone to see if their Mistress sent them anything, and each time they were disappointed to find nothing new.

    Their running took them into the central part of the city, and suddenly, the atmosphere changed to one of money and wealth. They made small talk with some of them, but most only gave them a nod or ignored them completely. They tried to listen to some of the music on their phone their Mistress had put on, but clearly they and their Mistress had very different tastes in music.

    They still hadn't spent any money by the time a craft store of some sort caught their eye. They were supposed to work on some creative project, she'd said. They still couldn't decide what they wanted that to be, though. Going in to check it out, they tried to keep an open mind as they considered what they could try. There was a representative there who immediately tried to help them, but they meekly told them that they were just looking around, then immediately headed to the books section to hide and look for ideas.

    They picked a bunch of books that looked interesting, and started paging through them. There were books on drawing people and anatomy, painting in both watercolor and acrylic, pottery - they didn't have any materials, but they were sure that their Mistress would not be opposed to them getting some - collaging - they put that one back, because they didn't have a whole lot of photos or anything to collage - and some drawing prompt books and coloring books.

    They turned around to see if there was anything else of interest, and dropped the books in surprise as they met the eyes of someone staring at them. They looked young, probably no younger than Delta. They couldn't place the stranger's gender, although something about the pink-and-blue hair and punk-ish outfit gave Delta nonbinary vibes. As soon as the stranger realized they'd been noticed, they turned away and were gone in a flash. Delta blinked in surprise. Had they just been nervous? If that was the case, then Delta would have to make an effort to talk to them later if they ran into each other again.

    As they picked up the fallen books they remembered they would have to carry all of them back, a weight they were already struggling to hold because of how awkward they were to carry. They narrowed their selection down to three books - a multipurpose sketchbook, a book on watercolor painting, and an adult coloring book. The latter was supposed to help with stress. Before they went to the counter, they realized they needed some actual materials, too, so they grabbed some pens and watercolors, and a backpack that they could carry everything in while they ran.

    They left the store once they paid for everything. It cost more than they expected, but thankfully they managed to stay within the budget their Mistress gave them. That done, they once again headed off to wherever their feet took them.

~~

    With their new backpack and supplies in tow, Delta rushed off to their next destination: a random left they took. Eventually they crossed out of the main section of the city, and into another area. It was still urban, but a lot less busy than wherever they had been before. Soon enough, they ran out of breath. The pain in their feet and legs finally catching up to them, they checked their GPS tracker to see where they went and for how long. They blinked in surprise as the number popped up. That hadn't felt like ten miles. It hadn't felt like two. They didn't normally run nearly that much, or that long. Was that just a post-sex energy surge, or something?

    And it was 4 PM, too. It wasn't surprising, per se, that so much time had passed, considering the time they took to check out the park, and to browse the craft store, not to mention other stores along the way. They were pretty tired, but their path had been windy, and it was only about a three mile walk back to their apartment. First, though, they needed a place to rest their feet, unless they wanted to be going back in an Uber. Which, they supposed, they could do. They were still under budget.

    Looking around the square they'd found themself in, they kept an eye out for anywhere where there might be something to do besides just get a bite to eat or window shop. Their eyes caught on a building with a retro sign declaring itself as 'ASZ', the video game cafe. They were interested immediately. In addition to taking on a creative pursuit, they were also learning how to play video games. That seemed like as good a destination as any, so they headed inside, hoping no one would see how sweaty they were.

    Thankfully, nobody seemed to be taking notice. It helped that it wasn't really crowded this early in the day. Judging by the neon light tubes which lined the edges of the room, currently off, this place was more of a nighttime scene. Not that they usually stayed up super late, and when they did, it was because their Mistress was 'occupied' with them.

    Delta nervously went up to the person at the counter. They seemed friendly enough, but it was still daunting. While many people had approached them over the last two weeks, and even over the last year or so, they didn't approach others a lot, and weren't entirely sure how to start up conversations in general.

    "Um... Hi. Um... what games do you have going on today?" they managed.

    They were, thankfully, unfazed by their awkwardness. "Oh, right now we just have the Pokken local going on. But it just started, so there's not many people there," they explained. Delta perked up a little - they didn't know any competitive games that they were particularly good at, but Pokken was the one that they weren't extremely bad at.

    "Ah... I guess I'll go to that," they laughed awkwardly. "I'm kind of new to the scene. It's the only one I know, so, I, um, I guess I came at a good time?"

    They knew how painfully awkward they sounded, and how much their social skills had deteriorated was obvious as their voice turned into a whisper by the end. At least, from what this guy was saying, it wasn't a big event. And when he brought Delta over to the area where they were playing, there were only two people there - both masculine presenting. Delta wasn't really trying to present as anything in particular today - though, the workout clothes they were wearing didn't do a whole lot of good not showing their curves. They resigned themself to being mistaken as a girl, knowing that most people, especially some members of the gaming community, weren't the best about non-binary people, and they didn't want to spend energy correcting people anyways.

    Delta walked up to a pair who were playing a match, and attempted to make their presence known with a meek 'hello.' That didn't work, so they waited awkwardly until one of them noticed they had company.

    "Hey, you! What's going on?" the first guy greeted them, someone taller with platinum blonde hair. "Are you here for Pokken?"

    "Uh. Yeah," they answered, feeling like a deer in headlights. "My name's Delta. Like, the Greek letter. It's, uh, nice to meet you." Their voice got quieter the more they spoke. Not having talked to people in a friendly way in months, they felt off, like they shouldn't be there, like they didn't deserve to be there. Like someone would get mad at them if they caught them there. But they knew their Mistress wanted them to actually go out and do things. So there wasn't an actual problem. And they had to do this.

    "Oh finally, new people," the other one groaned in an exaggerated manner. This one had neck-length spiky black hair, clearly using way too much hair gel, and was wearing some kind of sweater vest. "Welcome, welcome, Delta. Not too often we see new faces playing Pokken."

    "Um, yeah, I just moved," they half-lied, "and my roommate," they half-lied again, this time feeling worse, "had Pokken, so I just started playing it. I, uh, use a few different characters. I'm not too good with the names."

    "So I take it you didn't come from being a Pokemon fan, then," he asked, and Delta nodded. At least that wasn't a lie. "Well, I guess we got a lot to teach you, then."

    Delta nodded, trying to force a grin.

    "My name's Rye," the one with black hair said, holding out a hand for them to shake. "Or well, Ryan... But no one calls me that. Anyways, I'm the organizer here."

    "I'm Pierre," the other one said. "I'm not sure how many people are coming, so I guess you'll get our full attention. Lucky you," he winked.

    They nodded again, but the pit in their stomach was fading. They seemed fine, and now that they'd started, it helped to keep going. This attention was nice. At least, these two weren't being predatory towards them, asking for sex or anything like most of the people in communities like these they had the displeasure of meeting would do. And it turned out to be really fun to play the game with them.

    This felt safe, for now.

~~

    Delta left eventually, after finally managing to beat Pierre... in one round. He'd played it off with an excuse about his character's 'tier' or something, but Rye had scolded him, saying 'no Johns.' Delta wasn't really sure what that meant, but he did seem genuinely impressed by how they improved in just the few hours they had. They weren't sure when their Mistress would give them another free day to go back, but they did thankfully get both of their contact information - partially so they could give it to their Mistress, and partially so they could probably, maybe hang out with them and play some more.

    It was about 7 PM, so that meant it was about time to start heading home to be there by 9 or so. Their legs were still killing them, though, so they resigned to walk home. At least it was still pretty light outside. There was no doubt it'd be dark by the time they got home. Even then, 9 PM would leave them for an hour or so before they planned to sleep, but they did have that report to write.

    As they walked down the street with their backpack, glancing at their phone's screen to check the route every so often, they saw someone walking in the opposite direction.

    It was the same person that they'd seen in the craft store.

    Delta opened their mouth to say hi, but stopped as the other person noticed them and quickly looked down. Maybe they were just super shy. Delta was too, so they couldn't exactly blame them.

    They quickly put that thought aside, though. They could try to make friends when it wasn't so late. Eventually, they made it back home without too much trouble, aside from one cat call they pointedly ignored. As soon as they walked back into the apartment, they collapsed on the couch, laying down on it and taking their shoes and socks off. They spent a few minutes mentally recounting through everything that happened today so they could prepare the report. By their estimation, it was a fairly good use of their free day, and they had liked the freedom of being able to go where they wanted, when they wanted.

    As if on cue, their phone buzzed. They couldn't help but smile when they saw it was from their Mistress.

    "Plaything. Tell me about your day. Spare no detail."

    Delta immediately began crafting a text back, telling her all about their day. Running for miles, going to the craft store, the things they bought there and the ideas for a creative pursuit that came with them, going to the gaming cafe, and the contact info for the two people they met. They put as much detail in as possible, hoping that it would be enough to please their Mistress.

    Fortunately, it was. The response came almost immediately. "Very good, plaything. Well done doing what I told you to do."

    They smiled as they typed back a response. "Thank you, Mistress."

    "One more thing. Touch yourself tonight, and then once you finish, I want you to thank me again. Don't worry about messaging me too late. I'll be up all night with work. Do you understand?"

    "I understand, Mistress."

    The only response was a simple "Good."

    Delta sighed, heading to the bedroom where they threw their clothes into the laundry basket, then collapsed onto the bed. Trying to get into the mood, they let the memories of the things their Mistress had done to them, the ways she'd degraded them, fill their mind. It wasn't long before they were flushed, squirming in need.

    They threw their hand under their lingerie, touching themself without caring about propriety. They groaned as they found their clit, roughly playing with it almost in desperation. Their eyes widened as they rubbed their index and middle fingers in a circle around it, the heat building up, turning their legs to jelly. Their Mistress was showing them how they themself liked to be pleasured even without being there.

    They couldn't help but think about the things she would call them. She would call them a plaything, a fucktoy, useless, worthless and stupid and pathetic, then she would tell them how much of a good purchase they were, how much she enjoyed having them as her property, and she forced them to thank her over, and over again, throughout the pain and pleasure. Then she would slap their face and choke them, whether or not she liked the answer.

    That thought was too much, and they lifted their legs as the orgasm wracked their body. Their eyes rolled back into their flushed face, everything feeling so, so good. As the pleasure peaked, the image of their Mistress flashed through their mind, giving them one last thrill.

    Fatigue overtook them after that, and they closed their eyes. They snapped back open just as soon as they'd closed, though, as they remembered their instructions. They wiped their hand on the sheets, and picked up their phone to send one final text.

    "Thank you, Mistress, for this and everything. <3"