Persuading a Slave to Obedience
The road back to Rasmus' villa was calm and uneventful. The week-long trip to the city for business left the merchant exhausted and ready to return home to relax. The rickety sound of the carriage wheels against the road and the shouts of other drivers and road vendors became background noise that lulled the man to sleep.
Rasmus drifted back awake as the paved road changed to the familiar dirt path of his villa. He smiled at the comforting thought of being back to his place and wondered which of his slaves he would take to his bed tonight. Vivi had ample curves, but lacked in any stimulating conversation. There was Lule, a wonderful and educated slave who he often enjoyed talking to. His favorite male slave, Mohan, was always fun to dominate and a change from his women slaves.
With his slaves still on his mind, he exited the carriage, stretched, and walked towards his villa. Clicking his tongue, the driver pulled away to park the carriage and return the horses to the barn. The exhausted master passed through the iron gates to the courtyard. He briefly admired the great big initials RM and his family crest above the gate. Two guards saluted before opening the large wooden doors to the villa interior. Rasmus took a deep breath and sighed in relief. Home.
"Welcome back, sir," greeted a jovial man with a deep bow. His short, but poofy hair bounced as he came back up. Heino, Rasmus' head servant always welcomed him back. He wore his familiar luxurious purple clothing signifying his high position in the household.
"I am sure you are wanting to rest, sir, but there is a problem..." he hesitated, gauging the mood of his master. Rasmus glanced at his servant and, while tired, was curious to see what the problem was. Heino continued. "As you had said before you left, if the new slave caused any problems, you would deal with it personally. I regret to inform you that despite my best efforts, she has been causing a lot of problems."
"What problems is she causing?" Rasmus inquired, raising an eyebrow.
"She still doesn't accept her place as a slave in your most generous villa. She refuses to obey my and other's commands and she even tries to direct some of the other slaves as if she were the master of the household." Heino said with a slight smile musing at the thought.
Rasmus returned the chuckle, then paused for a moment and stroked his chin, absently feeling the hairs of his short beard. "Bring her to the room next to the library in one hour," he ordered. Heino smiled and bowed again before he turned heel and walked briskly away to find the slave. Rasmus, on the other hand, sighed and made his way to his apothecary room.
In the apothecary room, the merchant dug through his different potions, some of which were purchased and some he had made himself. He glanced at the different labels, shaking his head at some, and mentally noting others that could be useful for the future. His excitement grew as he read the different labels, each potion giving him ideas on how he would discipline his new slave. Finally, he came across one: Anthrope's Desire. Happy with his selection, he gripped the bottle tightly and slipped it into his pocket before leaving.
Rasmus found a servant and told him to bring tea to the room next to the library. With a bow, the servant left in a hurry to fulfill the order and Rasmus continued to his destination. Inside the room was rather plain, with a few unremarkable paintings, a fireplace, a small table, and a couple of wooden chairs. One of those chairs was going to be the slave's, which contained hidden restraints that could be used to quickly subdue a surprised person.
Sitting comfortably in the chair closest to the door, he waited until he heard a knock. The previous servant walked in and placed a kettle of tea on the table with two cups. The master of the house poured the tea out into the two cups and added to the second cup a substantial amount of the contents of the container he had brought with him.
Once again, Rasmus relaxed into his chair as he waited for Heino. The minutes seemed to extend as the hour neared to an end and he found himself idling twiddling his hands.. On the dot, there was a knock on the door, which was followed by Heino and the slave woman. She had golden hair, which was tied up with a blue bow. She wore an equally blue dress that swayed elegantly with every step she took. The master smiled at her as he remembered her beauty. The slave gave him a defiant look before she turned her gaze away. Heino bowed, left, and shut the door behind him leaving Rasmus alone with his new slave.
He motioned for the woman to take a seat. She hesitated and cautiously walked to the chair before sitting, giving a small sigh of relief of being off her feet.
He asked softly, "What was your name again?"
"Amelia," she responded shortly.
Amelia glanced at the cup of tea and reached out to it. "Not yet," commanded Rasmus. As a slave, you are no longer in control of your actions and will wait for my command," he scolded.
Anger flashed across the slave's face. Her outreached hand froze in place for a couple of pensive moments as she shifted her look between the cup of tea and Rasmus. Finally, she smirked, reached out the rest of the way, and gulped down the warm tea before the master could react, but he wouldn't have reacted anyway. While she drank the tea, she was oblivious to the smile that crept up on the master's face.
Indignant
, thought Rasmus.
This is going to be fun to break her.
She slammed down the empty tea cup triumphantly and stared into his dark eyes, challenging him.
"You don't seem to accept that you're a slave now, do you?
"I will never be an obedient slave," Amelia shot at him.
"Is that so?" he said more to himself than to her.
Rasmus contemplated his angry slave and her rebellious attitude. He took a sip of his tea while looking at her, savoring the warm, bitter flavor of his drink before placing the cup back onto the table. "You're not like other slaves here, Amelia. Most of the slaves I have bought were already well trained by the time I exchanged coin for them, only needing correction here or there. But when I saw you, I knew that I needed you, despite your lack of training."
"Maybe you made a mistake in purchasing me." Amelia responded sharply.
"I doubt it," Rasmus chuckled, taking another sip. "Every slave can be trained, it's just a matter of knowing how to motivate their obedience."
"I will fight and disobey you to the end."
"We'll see about that," he smiled. He had to give it to her. She was very confident in her ability to succeed in continuing her defiance. He changed the subject, "Did the other slaves tell you about me?"
