Pony Tales - Buttons

Part 1: A Rough Arrival

By Firefly

*****

Even though a large storm had torn through the area a few days ago. Tall Tails seems to have remained relatively unscathed save their shattered gate which had been a part of the property for the last forty years. In a way, its repair and summary replacement would be like taking a step forward and into new things. There was a lot on the horizon for the BDSM facility and while one of its animals had gotten hurt when the gate had been sundered, many saw it as a good omen. The rest of the property had fared well from the storm, with exception of a few roofs that had a sheet of steel or two ripped off them as well as a couple of overturned barrels which many of the residents had taken joy in using as practice jumps.

Today, following the storm it seemed that mother nature had decided it wanted to shake them up and then boil them all alive. The temperature had skyrocketed and as the news put it, it was the hottest day of the year so far. Which on a property surrounded by forest, swamps, and following a rainstorm made for a very sticky day. Sticky enough that many of the residents of the place were refusing to leave the icy cold confines of the barn. Something a few cracks of the crop fixed very quickly. But this also made for a very busy day for the grooms who were constantly fetching fresh water and rotating individuals out of the unrelenting sun.

The Sun that was currently bearing down on the face of a young man currently laying flat on the smooth concrete that made up the exterior of the main entryway.

~How long have I been laying here?~

He wondered this as he stared at the intricate brickwork that made up the archway of the front door, his chest rising and falling as he fought to catch his breath. What many didn't realize is that they faced a series of tests the second they walked through the front gates. It was a nearly three-kilometer hike while carrying any luggage you'd brought with you and for someone who was visibly out of shape like he was, it had been absolute murder.

Reaching up to wipe at his sweat-slicked brow he nearly jumped out of his skin when the smiling face of a red-headed female poked in at the edge of his vision. This wasn't just any female, however. She had a mane of fiery red hair, bound in a beautifully curled ponytail at the back of her head. She was dressed in a shining black catsuit. But that wasn't even the most curious part. The curious part was the intricate horse-like equipment she wore, leather dyed in blazing oranges and reds clung to her body in an intricate harness. A matching armbinder held her arms behind her back and a pair of boots ending in hooves that clip-clopped merrily on the concrete steps.

The wore a head harness as well and while her mouth was free of anything. She didn't speak. She simply leaned down, the scent of her perfume drifting over the young man as she tilted her head, a tiny sound echoed from a small speaker attached to the chest of her harness. The sound of a horse nickering softly as she tilts her head in the other direction like she was asking him if he was ok.

The male stared up at her with blue-green eyes and offered a small smile, "Well hello there." He said in an accent that marked him as very likely not being a resident of the UK soil upon which had just walked. In fact, he was from quite a ways away in the 'great white north' as some called it. Canada.

The female staring down at him stopped tilting her head, a soft whinny echoing from her slightly tinny speaker at him and a look of concern washing over her vibrantly red painted lips.

Noting the concern, the man chuckled softly and sat up, tousling sweat-soaked hair and eliciting an unhappy snort from the woman's speaker as he splashed her with sweat. She wrinkled her nose and stepped back as he sat up.

"Don't worry, I'm fine. I don't always look like a sweat-soaked pile of crap laying on the ground." He said to the pony who let a smile slip onto her lips.

"No? And here I thought I was going to have to send someone to scrape you off the concrete..." Came another voice. This time from a loudspeaker above the doorway.

The redheaded female seemed to tense up at the voice.

"Firefly. What have I told you about venturing out the front of the property?"

The fiery pony let a snort echo from her speaker.

"You think so do you? My office. Now." The voice said, suddenly firm and not joking. The fiery pony slumped a bit and seemed to let out a soundless sigh. She offered a polite nod to the man sitting on the porch and hurried off and through a small side door.

"As for you. I usually like to make contact with people at the gate. I do not appreciate my instructions not being followed, but seeing as the gate is broken at the moment... I'm assuming one of the workers waved you through. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. I'll send one of my staff along to collect you shortly. Perhaps consider the other rules that were made clear previous to your arrival before you set foot within my facility." The voice went silent with a small bit of static, followed by a click leaving the man sitting there both confused but also with a small chuckle.

He was Dakota Abbot. A potential newcomer to Tall Tails facility.

Glancing down at his large duffle bag for a moment he'd consider the woman's words. Consider the other rules that were made clear. Well, at least one of them was obvious. It was what looked like a mail carrier that held newspapers. It was sitting directly across from him with an embossed sign above it reading, 'Cell phones here'. He tugged his smartphone from his pocket, rolling it over in his hand for a few moments. Like many that came before him, he understood that the decision to place it in the bin was acceptance of what he'd signed up for. Why he'd even come here in the first place. Too long had he lived in the dark, afraid to be himself or to do things that he'd watched from afar for too long. He flipped open his social media app and typed a status into it.

'Goodbye Dakota, hello new me.' Popped up on top of his social media before he turned off his phone, opened the front of the bin, and unceremoniously tossed it into the chute that ran down into the house. He watched it slide into the dark and then eased the hatch shut. That was it. This was it. He reached up and ran fingers across the rose gold chain hanging about his neck, tucked beneath his shirt. He was still fighting to catch his breath and had not brought any water with him. There WAS a bucket of crystal clear water placed next to the door, but he wasn't that desperate. Not to lean down and drink from a bucket on a stranger's front porch, even if the water did look clean.

"The water is clean. I can assure you." Came a voice from the side. Standing in the now-open left door of the intricate double doors was a girl dressed in a rather frilly maids outfit. She dipped into a polite curtsy and offered him a smile, her raven hair dancing about her face in soft curls.

"Oh...I uh...don't doubt that." Dakota stammered.

"Most do. But you're thirsty, aren't you?" The maid asked in a rather playful sounding Scottish accent.

"I mean, I'm not THAT desperate." He said with a laugh, "I'm not about to drink out of a bucket...I have some standards."

The maid whistled, "Boy oh boy, have you come to the wrong place then if that offends your tastes..." The maid giggled softly and turned about, facing towards the interior of the household, "I'm sure the trainers will have some fun with you. Come along, Mistress Aria doesn't like to be kept waiting." Without any waiting, the maid would walk inside.

Dakota shouldered his bag quickly and glanced once more at the bucket of water, the maid's words echoing in his head a little bit. Should he be all that surprised that a ponyplay facility would require drinking from a bucket? For that's what Tall Tails was. One of the biggest facilities on this side of the planet for Ponyplay. Made financially possible by its former owner who spent her years buying and selling companies to the point where Tall Tails was almost completely self-sufficient now. They even owned the nearest major hospital. Tall Tails focused on offering a place in which people could explore many aspects of BDSM in a safe space full of education, structure, and no judgment. Although the main focus was on ponyplay as a whole. Of course, it wasn't cheap to spend time here but on occasion, there were special cases like Dakota's where an anonymous sponsor paid for his visit which was a story in and within itself.

As Dakota followed the young maid into the main foyer and then through a door into a sitting room with several chairs and shelves full of books. The maid paused suddenly and turned to Dakota, "Right. We have a different stop to make first as Mistress Aria doesn't like stinky ponies in her office."

"Excuse m----" But before Dakota could even finish the sentence the maid was walking off, motioning for him to follow and robbing him of the chance of being offended. She led him through the main hallway that ran beneath the main set of grand stairs in the foyer and to what seemed to be a small guest room with a single bed, some vintage furniture, and to the side was a full bathroom. The maid turned to regard him for a moment and then offered an almost apologetic smile.

"Mistress Aria has requested you wash up before you meet with her. Through the door there is a full bathroom, full toiletries, as well as grooming products, have been provided although based on the look of your bag I assume you've brought some of your own." She paused for a moment and tapped her lips before smiling, "Dress casually and presentably. I'll be just outside your room when you're all finished up!" She beamed and offered a deep curtsy before turning and heading out of the room, tugging the door shut behind her with an almost audible click.

Dakota stood there both surprised, a little insulted, and confused. He reached up and tousled his long blonde hair, which when tied fell to mid-back, "Guess I shouldn't expect this to be the most typical of places." He would certainly need to adjust his mindset. While he truly wanted most aspects of submission and domination, as well as ponyplay. He'd never really experienced it much before. He'd attended a few virtual munches and had even taken a few local shibari classes at a prominent BDSM club, but never once had he had a true experience. So this would be something new for him in most regards.

Tossing his duffle bag onto the nearby bed he'd dig around until he found his hairbrush as well as his hair care and body wash. His shampoo and conditioner were fairly expensive, being one aspect of himself he did consistently take care of. His hair was his best feature in his opinion, not that he had a very high opinion of himself most days. Most days he hated the person looking back at him whenever he looked in the mirror. Something he'd come to terms with but had never spoken out about, not until recently.

Casual but presentable. He doubted he had much in the way of outfits to fit that bill so he went with blue jeans and a boring white t-shirt. It was about as basic as you could get. Afterward, he slipped into the bathroom and went about cleaning himself up...

...Because apparently, Aria didn't appreciate stinky ponies in her office.