“Tone check,” Sam said, looking back over their shoulder at Victoria as they stepped inside the mall.

“Ready and willing,” she replied with a confident smile, not knowing or caring what she was supposed to be ready and willing to do.

Sam nodded as if they’d expected this response - which they probably had - and held out their left hand. Vicky took it without hesitation, feeling cotton candy clouds engulf her brain as she did so, and let them pull her in close. “Good girl,” they whispered. She tried not to tremble too much in response, still dimly aware that they were in public, even though her surroundings had now blurred into insignificance, her focus entirely on Sam. She was led in an obedient daze through the mall, smiling stupidly at her fiancé all the while.

Her fiancé. God, it still gave her a thrill whenever she used that word, even in her current state of drifty submission.

After that elaborate proposal, the couple had taken a few weeks to enjoy the novelty of being engaged (and to celebrate Valentine’s Day), and then dived into wedding planning. Sam had much more of a knack for it than Victoria, who was more than fine with letting them do most of the organisation, while she offered help, opinions and vetoes when needed. Her own thoughts were focused on trying to sneak something hypnosis-related into the festivities without any of their friends or family noticing - tricky to pull off, but something they both wanted to accomplish, given how much of their relationship incorporated hypno-kink. She’d been brainstorming furiously for weeks now, trying to come up with something appropriate, to no avail. It wasn’t a big deal - they still had plenty of time to come up with something.

For now, Vicky didn’t have to worry about wedding planning, or indeed anything much at all. She didn’t need to think about where she was, or what direction she was walking in - she could rely on Sam to guide her through the thick pink fog, to lead her by the hand to their destination, wherever that was. She retained just enough awareness to put one foot in front of another, to avoid tripping, and to ensure she didn’t bump into anyone. All the rest of her attention was completely devoted to Sam, in a world of her own that revolved entirely around them, being gently pulled along as if her arm were a leash, just a weak, dumb, helpless, happy little pet -

“Sam?”

The voice snapped Victoria out of her docile reverie. Blinking, she took in her surroundings - she was standing in the mall’s tattoo parlour. She’d walked past the place hundreds of times but never set foot inside, so finding herself there was startling for a moment... until fragments of memory began to return to her, along with the flustered smile she always got when she was allowed to realise that Sam had been playing with her mind.

She was getting a tattoo. She couldn’t remember exactly what she and Sam decided it would be - only that it would be small, and located on her lower back. And it would clearly indicate, to anyone who got a chance to see it properly, that she belonged to Sam. That they were her owner, their Master, and she was their pet, their property, their hypnotised slave. Given its position, in most circumstances it wouldn’t be visible - but she’d have to be extra careful in the changing rooms at her gym, lest anyone find out what a weak-minded sub she was.

All of which, she was perfectly fine with. She could handle the task of keeping her back covered, and was tantalised by the risk of getting caught and exposed for what she was (mostly because it wasn’t that much of a risk). Sam, too, was comfortable with faintly jeopardising the secret of their dynamic. So there was no problem. Except that the girl behind the counter clearly recognised them both.

“Sam! Victoria! I thought that was you guys,” she said warmly, stepping out from behind the counter to greet them properly.

“Lia - hey! I didn’t realise you worked here.” Sam’s tone and smile were perfectly friendly, but their eyes had gone wide with - well, not quite panic. But they were certainly off-balance, alarmed by the presence of someone they knew.

Victoria did a double-take. She hadn’t recognised Lia at first, which was probably fair - the younger girl had joined their martial arts society after the couple had both already left, and prior to that she was more an acquaintance of Sam’s than Victoria’s, being a friend of their brother. But she’d met her a few times before, and Lia now looked very different. She’d dyed her brunette hair jet-black on one side and sea-green on the other, her nose and lips were adorned with piercings, and she wore a black short-sleeved shirt and ripped jeans. The punky aesthetic suited the feel of the tattoo parlour - particularly since the shirt showed off a tattoo on each of her upper arms - but contrasted with the beaming grin on the eighteen-year-old’s face.

“Oh, yeah - I dunno if you heard, but I took a gap year to earn some money before college. I got interested in working here when they did my first tattoo.” She tapped her right arm, which displayed a flower with purple petals just below her shoulder. “I’ve always been pretty artsy, and I’m not squeamish, so it was a natural fit. Been here six months now, I love it!”

“Wow, that’s great, Lia,” Victoria said with a smile. “I’m happy for you...”

“Hey, I’m happy for you guys too! I saw the wedding announcement on Insta - congratulations!” She glanced excitedly from Sam to Victoria and back again. “Is that why you came in? Wanna get a little something to celebrate the impending nuptials? I’d be happy to do whatever you guys want - I’ve gotten really good, I swear. My boss, Ron - he’s this big burly guy in his forties, and I was kinda scared of him when I first joined, but he’s actually a total sweetheart, he’s taught me so much. He even started leaving me in charge of the shop the last couple of weeks, says I’m ready to handle it. Which I can, ’cos I rock.” She giggled, which proved to be only a brief break before she resumed her stream of chatter. “I can even hook you guys up with a discount, ’cos we’re friends!”

“Could you excuse us for just a second, Lia?” Sam cut in, giving her an imploring look.

“Oh, sure,” Lia replied, undaunted. “Take all the time you need. We’re not exactly rushed off our feet today, hence why I’m the only one here. Have a look at the usual kinda stuff we do, if you like - see if any inspiration strikes.” She made a sweeping gesture towards the gallery of tattoo pictures displayed on the walls, and then darted back behind her counter.

Taking Victoria’s hand, Sam pulled her over to the corner of the room. “We don’t have to do this,” they said quietly, their brow furrowed with concern. “We can come back another day, or even forget the whole idea...”

“I really don’t want to forget the whole idea,” Victoria said immediately. “I don’t even remember what the idea is, but I know enough to know I wanna do it!”

Sam smiled faintly. “I get that. But, I mean... it’s Lia. I’ve known her since she was six. It feels weird having her do something that relates to our...” They lowered her voice further and leaned in close to Victoria. “Our kink stuff.”

“That’s fair. If you’re uncomfortable, we don’t have to do this today - we can come back another time, like you said...”

“But I don’t wanna offend Lia, or upset her,” Sam sighed, looking despondent. “She’s such a nice kid, and she seems so eager. I don’t wanna discourage her.”

“I don’t think that’s possible.” Victoria smirked. “She seems like a boundless well of enthusiasm to me!”

“I know. Even so... If we come back another day and get someone else to do it, and she finds out...”

“You guys OK?” Lia called out. Far from perturbed by their hushed conversation, she still wore the same cheerful smile.

“Yeah,” Sam replied, biting their lip nervously. “We were just, uh...” They tailed off, at a loss for words for once.

Victoria inhaled deeply. When Sam was struggling, it was her job to step in. That wasn’t part of being a good slave - that was part of being a good partner, and she knew Sam would do the same for her. “We were just discussing the tattoo we want done - that I want done,” she said, starting to walk back across the shop towards the counter. “It’s just that it’s kinda... unusual, and, uh - risqué. So we were just trying to decide whether we’d be comfortable with someone we know doing it - and we should check if you would be comfortable, too...”

“Oh, hey, listen.” Lia threw up her hands in a placatory gesture. “I can’t tell you how many weird tattoos I’ve done since I’ve been working here, and yeah, some of them have been a little on the saucy side! Nothing fazes me any more.” The bright energy in her eyes softened, making her smile less ‘golden retriever’ and more kind and sympathetic. “I’m sure it’s awkward ’cos I know you guys, but I swear, whatever it is you want, I’ll be totally discreet. No questions asked, and no-one else needs to know about it.”

“Really?” Sam asked.

“I mean, I have to give a description to Ron, for our records, but if I say it’s something private, and risqué, he’ll only want something vague. Or, if you’re really not OK with me doing it, you can come back another day and someone else can do it for you. But I promise you, I’ll do a good job, and it’ll be totally confidential. Cross my heart.”

The couple looked at each other. Sam still looked uncertain, but not as much as before.

“Sounds fine to me,” Victoria said with a shrug. Her instincts told her Lia could be trusted. “You know her better than me, so... it’s up to you, babe.”

Sam scrunched up their face a little, and leaned in close to their pet fiancé again. “This is when being the dominant backfires on me,” they mumbled, which got a laugh out of her. “Alright,” they said at normal volume, smiling broadly. “Alright, let’s do it.”

Vicky clapped her hands together excitedly. “Yesss!”

“Awesome!” Lia stepped out from behind the counter again. “So, what are we thinking?”

After a moment’s hesitation and a quick glance around to make sure they weren’t in danger of being overheard (which they weren’t, since no-one out in the mall was anywhere near the parlour’s entrance), Sam told Lia their specifications, and confirmed that only Vicky would be getting inked. The teenager’s eyebrows inched higher with every sentence, and her smile grew a little more incredulous, but her reaction was no more adverse than that. Once Sam had finished, she nodded slowly. “Sure, I can definitely do that, no problem. Shouldn’t take too long either, since it’s so simple.”

Sam and Victoria exchanged a bemused glance. “You must have a hundred questions,” the submissive chuckled.

“Thousands,” Lia admitted with a wry grin, her eyes darting back and forth between the two of them. “But like I said, no questions asked. I don’t need to know any more than what you’re willing to tell me - anything else is your business.” Half-turning, she gestured to an adjustable black leather bed-chair towards the back of the shop. “D’you wanna come over then, Victoria?”

The couple shared another look, and Victoria could tell Sam’s anxieties had been more or less entirely swept away. More than anything else, they looked very impressed by Lia’s professionalism. She felt the same. The girl must’ve been dying to know more about the tattoo and the meaning behind it - her mind must be racing with theories and conclusions about their relationship dynamic, many of which were probably accurate. But she was restraining her curiosity with extraordinary strength of will.

Approaching the black chair, Victoria pulled off her light pink sweatshirt with Lia’s permission, leaving her wearing only a sports bra on her top half. She lay down on her front, while Lia pulled up a stool and sat down, with the part of Vicky’s back she was to decorate right in her sightline. Sam hovered nearby, watching with interest as Lia reached for the nearby table where her equipment was laid out.

“So, I’ve gotta ask...” One side of her face pressed into the headrest, Victoria glanced over her shoulder at the young tattoo artist. “Is this the weirdest tattoo you’ve done?”

“Oh, well, obviously I can’t tell you guys any details,” Lia said as she applied rubbing alcohol to Victoria’s back. She gasped at the feeling of the cold liquid on her skin. “But I was just thinking, this only just made it into the top five!”

“Wow. I’m almost scared to wonder what the top four are!”

“I don’t know how you can keep a straight face,” Sam commented. “And, like, maintain your composure while you do the tattoo.”

“Yeah, I’d be way too flustered and giggly,” Victoria said, a bubbly laugh escaping her lips even as she spoke.

“Well, I kinda have this ability to, like, narrow my focus, so I can concentrate on just doing the tattoo, and not thinking about what it means or symbolises. Helps with things like this - stops any embarrassment from affecting me.”

Sam gave a sharp, impressed whistle. “That’s pretty neat. How’d you do that?”

“Well, the first time I got a request like this, I was too flustered to do it - Ron had to take that one. But I was determined not to let that happen again, so I sort of... guided myself through a form of meditation to kinda condition myself to be less embarrassed. I’ve used the technique before, it got me over my test anxiety at school. It’s pretty similar to - I dunno how much you guys know about hypnosis?”

Victoria stifled another giggle, burying her face in the headrest. She could hear a waver in Sam’s tone as they replied, clearly struggling to conceal their own amusement. “Uhhm... I know a little about it...”

A loud hum abruptly started nearby. “I’m gonna get started now, Victoria, if that’s OK with you,” Lia said, her tone reassuringly calm. Vicky nodded, her face rubbing against the headrest as she did so. “It shouldn’t sting that much, because your lower back has more skin and less nerve endings than, say, your spine. Which I will avoid, obvi. But if it does hurt too bad, or you need to stop for any reason, just say. Or if I can’t hear you over the machine, smack this with the palm of your hand a couple of times.” She gestured to the armrest nearest to her.

Victoria shuffled around on the chair a little, making herself absolutely comfortable. As Lia leaned towards her and raised the tattoo needle, which was humming like an angry bee, she tried to conceal the desire in her expression, unsure whether the teenager could still see her face properly. She still didn’t know precisely what the tattoo was - her brain was continuing to play keep-away with the information, only allowing her to know the general type of thing it was - but she was beyond excited for it, getting turned on at the (vague) thought of it.

She couldn’t wait to feel the sting of the needle, inscribing her flesh with something only she and her Master knew the full significance of. Although Lia had probably guessed...

***

Two Weeks Later

Squirting a small blob of lotion into the palm of her hand, Victoria turned away from the mirror and looked over her shoulder at her reflection, fixing her gaze on the lettering on her lower back. The angle she was at, she could only see the top line - which read ‘PROPERTY OF’ - and the very tops of the letters of Sam’s full name on the next line. But she had a good enough sense of its size to cover the area with a layer of lotion. The skin had stopped being sore within a couple of days, but still got quite dry from time to time. (Lia had assured her that wouldn’t last, but the lotion would help in the meantime.) Reaching around her torso, she began to rub the cool substance onto her skin.

It was difficult for her to ever see the full tattoo clearly, without taking a photo of it. In fact, that was why Sam had selected that spot - they’d even written the words in pen once before, to make sure it was situated obscurely enough that Vicky wouldn’t be able to see it properly, even using a mirror. They’d told her, “It’s not important for you to be able to read this, pet. It’s just in case you’re ever found somewhere, in case you ever get lost, and someone needs to return you to me.”

The scenario was as hot as it was implausible. Even if Vicky ever managed to get herself lost far from home, it wasn’t as if she’d show a random stranger her tattoo and ask them to deliver her to her fiancé. But the image was irresistibly sexy, and the mark - she sometimes thought of it as a brand - made her feel like... well, property. A belonging of Sam’s, with no real personhood of her own.

She traced a fingertip over the ‘P’ in ‘PROPERTY’, sending submissive shivers racing through her naked body. More than a food bowl with her name on it, or a collar, or even an engagement ring, this really reinforced how much she’d surrendered her autonomy. Rings or collars could be taken off - but tattoos were not so easy to remove.

She was marked for life with a sign of her Master’s ownership.