Chapter Two
Return to the Fold
She'd been suspended for a couple of hours now. Sweat was running down her body and her shoulders ached. Her Master knew just what he was doing though, as there wasn't any danger of real injury. The vibrating ben wah balls had kept her pussy wet and her insides churning. She wanted to cum, but knew that she'd need more stimulation than she was getting now. By the time her Master came home, she'd be ready to beg for release; a place He loved to see her in. She wondered how long He'd make her wait; what she'd have to endure once He returned to her tonight. Her body shuddered as she imagined all manner of delightfully painful torments that could be added to what she was already going through.
*****
Three weeks earlierβ¦
Valerie woke up 15 minutes before her alarm, Sally still sleeping comfortably in her arms. She thought back to the night before when she'd been changing to return home.
"Will Sally accept a safety word, Valerie?" he'd asked.
"I think so, Master. She misses serving you."
"I miss her as well. If she does return, I intend to reduce her to a sex object for an entire weekend. I'm inviting several friends for the weekend and Sally will be the perfect entertainment."
"Master, she'll love it. Should I let her know what she's in for?"
"No, you know how much I like to surprise my slaves."
"Of course, Master."
Valerie smiled with a little bit of envy. Sally was going to have fun, provided she accepted a safety word. Val gently shook Sally, rousing her slave.
"Mistress? What can I do for you?"
"We have to talk, Sally."
Sally blinked the sleep from her eyes. "About Master, Mistress?"
"Yes. He'll take you back if you have a safety word. Did you think about it over the weekend?"
"Yes, Mistress. I don't know if I can."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know if I could use a safety word. Mistress, I don't want to stop anything you or He will do to or with me."
"Sally, a safety word isn't a safe word. You won't be able to stop anything from happening to you. All Master wants is for you to be able to let Him know if there's something dangerous happening. You know how safe He plays; it's highly unlikely that you'll need to use it. I want you to have it as well. I don't want to lose you, Sally."
Sally looked pensive as she considered Valerie's request and feelings. For two years, Sally had been safe word free. The thought of being able to stop something, to have the power to take control of her submission, was terrifying to her. She craved the lack of control over her destiny. Yet, her submission to Valerie was about more than that. Sally wanted to serve her Mistress as well; to do what Valerie wanted and needed. Sally would do anything for her Mistress and lover, even this.
"Okay, Mistress, I'll take a safety word; for you."
Valerie hugged Sally and kissed her. "Thank you, my pet. Now, fix breakfast while I get ready for work."
"Yes, Mistress."
At work, Valerie found the grapevine to be working just fine. Calvin was still in the hospital, though no longer in intensive care. The infection was waning and no longer presented an imminent threat. His system, however, was still weak and he was unable to travel, even to his house. With Mary covering as much as possible, he was able to maximize the 2 to 3 hours of work he could manage from the hospital bed.
Nothing major presented itself that morning and Valerie was able to fit a call to Charles during her lunch.
"Master, Sally will take a safety word."
"Very good. I'm glad to have her as a submissive again. She's to report to the mansion Friday night and expect to stay all weekend."
"Yes, Master, I'll let her know."
"I want you here tomorrow night. Pack for overnight."
"Yes, Master. I'm looking forward to it."
That afternoon, Valerie took some time to meet with Mary Carstares, Calvin's secretary. Mary looked up and smiled. She picked up the phone and connected with the front desk. "Imogene, I'm going to be in a meeting for an hour. Can you cover my phone? Thanks."
"Ms. Burbon, step into his office, we'll talk there."
Valerie followed the young lady into Calvin's office. She remembered Mary's enthusiasm when she'd first applied for a job as Valerie's secretary. Valerie had just hired June and wasn't able to give Mary a job. Fortunately, Calvin had also been in need of a real secretary and Mary fit in with the company. To Val's knowledge, Mary had no kinks of her own, yet was fascinated about all things kinky.
As they sat on the couch Calvin kept in his office, Mary asked, "So what do you want to know about pony play, Ms. Burbon?"
"I guess, the short answer is everything; but that's too broad to start. Let's start with why. Why do men and women want to be human horses?"
"Well, as I'm sure you're aware; the exact reasons are as varied as the people involved. They can, however, be broken down into a few general classifications. For some, it's the ultimate extension of submission. To be the owned animal of another person is a form of submission that some crave and revel in. Others have much more in common with transsexuals than with submissives. These people feel as if they were born to the wrong species; that they're really meant to be some type of animal. There may be no submission involved in their animal play at all; at least none beyond the natural level that might exist between the animal type and humans in nature. Human ponies with that motivation are frequently in more of a partnership with their human counterparts than in a submissive relationship."
"Yes, the first type I've encountered. Giggy will sometimes submit as Rachael's pet dog. She put me through it once. I didn't enjoy it beyond knowing it was pleasing to her."
"I can understand that. The third broad group of reasons is admiration for the animal itself. Imitating those we admire has long been a human thing, and some people carry that to animals. In the past, such behavior would get you committed to a mental institution; after all, you had to be nuts to want to be an animal. I suppose that could still happen, but today, there's more tolerance for behaviors that don't directly harm others. Beyond those reasons, there are so many more as to defy categorization."
"That's kind of what I thought might be the case. Is sex always a part of pony play?"
"Not at all, though it can be. For the people who view themselves as truly the animal in some way, sex with their human counterparts would feel too much like bestiality. Others find the animalization itself incredibly erotic and wouldn't dream of excluding sex from their play. It's much like BDSM in that way."
"Okay. What types of activities do human ponies and their human counterparts participate in?"
"When we're specifically talking about ponies, the human part of each team is usually called the trainer. The trainers will treat ponies much like a horse trainer will interact with real horses. In the broadest sense, there are three types of play ponies engage in; sport, work, and show. Sport ponies will compete in sporting events similar to many sports for horses. The most common are races, both with riders and with pulled carts. My understanding is that the gathering you're going to will have pony play barrel races."
"I'm not familiar with barrel racing; do you have any idea what it's about?"