I had been my master's live-in slut for a number of months; during this period of time, I had undergone what I can only describe as a process of transformation. Things about me that had been hiding in plain sight had been brought into sharp relief. Since the point where my master first collared me - some months before I was able to live with my master full-time - he had been gently (or sometimes not so gently, depending on how well I had behaved) helping me explore myself.
My name is David, although my name is not important now. I'm in my late thirties, but neither is that important. The identity by which I was known in the real world has gone, been subsumed into something else. When I am spoken to now, I am usually addressed as "slut", "fucktoy", "cissie", "slave", or "faggot" - although my master is blessed with a large vocabulary and, as such is very creative with the names that he calls me.
We had developed a sort of morning ritual, my master and I. Either late at night or very early in the morning - my master somehow always had a way of knowing when I was asleep - he would slip a note in a sealed envelope under my door. I usually would make sure I was up by 6 a.m. in order to allow myself adequate time to follow my master's instructions. Usually the note would contain instructions about what my master wanted for breakfast, whether he would like tea or coffee, how to dress, what time I should call upon my master, and what toys I was to bring through with me. It would not be atypical, for example, for my master to request me to dress up in lingerie, wear a collar of his choice, to bring him breakfast and a cup of tea, while also not forgetting to bring a bag containing the toys he had specified.
This morning's note was different. It just read:
Slut. You are to come and see me as soon as you read this. I expect you to be naked and collared. That is all.
The tone of this note was different from what I would read on a typical morning. Usually - although there was no question that my master was in charge - his notes would be written in a tone that was warm and affectionate. This time was different. I was left with the chilling feeling that I'd transgressed in some way; that I had somehow violated the unwritten set of rules that we'd established between ourselves. (We'd always both been of the opinion that it was a bit silly to try and write everything out in formalised contract; to commit everything to writing would be to curtail the flexibility and creativity that a D/s relationship can offer.)
Despite my anxiety, though - desiring not to deviate from my master's instructions - I did as the note instructed. I undressed myself - removing the sexy purple nightie that my master now had me wear by night - and went to fetch my collar from my toy chest. The collar that I put on was the more "fetishy" of the ones that I had available - dark, durable, fastened with a buckle, and with a leach and two chains bearing nipple clamps dangling from it. Given that my master's note indicated some displeasure on his part, I assumed that this one, dark and sombre as it was - rather than one of the more feminine, pretty ones - would be the most appropriate for me to wear in the circumstances.
Having then dressed myself appropriately - naked but for my collar - I left my room and went to knock on my master's door.
"Enter", I heard my master say. There was a coldness in his voice. A sense of menace in the way he uttered that single word. I shuddered, before turning the handle of the door and entering.
"Kneel".
I obeyed. As was our custom, I knelt down before my master, and - as I was wearing this collar in particular - handed my master my leash. He grabbed it out of my hand, and tugged lightly on it. I felt a tingle of anticipation run through my body, and a slight stirring in my crotch, as it always did something strange and almost indefinable to me whenever my master asserted his dominance, even in little ways like that.
"Do you know why I've called you in here to see me like this, slut?". I shook my head. "Speak, slut".
"I can only assume that I have incurred my master's displeasure, somehow." I replied, nervously. My voice was shaky. The tone in my master's voice had set me on edge somewhat: I had been frightened of inadvertently offending my master since the early days of our relationship - on a couple of occasions, I had acted up and started trying to top from the bottom; been a little bit bratty, and once, hilariously had been under the impression that I might be able to act like a switch and try to dominate my master. (He soon found a way of disabusing me of such silly notions, but that's a story that I'll perhaps tell elsewhere.)
"Yes slut, you have, I'm afraid. Do you know what you've done?" Again, I shook my head. "You really are such a stupid slut, aren't you?" he exclaimed. "You don't really don't have the faintest idea, do you?"
"No", I whimpered - genuinely upset that I'd done something wrong in some way that I didn't understand. (I exist to serve and please my master, and I take these duties seriously - and so it crushes me when I fail to live up to his expectations of me.)
"Very well, slut. I have in mind a course of corrective actions for your transgressions. But you must listen carefully, because I'm going to offer you a choice, and I'm going to expect a decision from you quite soon after I've explained the implications of the options - I might give you a few minutes to think it over."
"The first option - and, my preferred option, incidentally - is that you learn how to overcome your failings experientially. I won't explain to you now precisely what will happen if you choose this option, but if you consent to it, you're agreeing to give me absolute free reign for an evening. No safe words; no acting; no fucking around. You put your trust wholly in me for one evening. I decide when you've had enough. Understood?" (I nodded.)
My master continued: "The second option is that I explain to you in great detail what you've done wrong. You come to understand it intellectually. And try to modify your behaviour accordingly. This approach is less effective, by itself, in my experience as a Dom, but I try to find that it works best if done in conjunction with solitary confinement and enforced sleep deprivation. You'd be placed in a cell; food would be slid under your door, periodically. Sensors would be attached to your body to monitor your state of awakeness. If you fell asleep, you would be woken up by a recording of me reminding you of the lessons you need to learn. You'd be in there until I decided that you'd been appropriately conditioned."
My master lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper: "The latter approach has been known to take days to work. Sometimes weeks". He paused, before continuing: "Do you know which option you'd like to choose, slut?"
Without hesitation, I blurted out: "The former, the former!". My desperation to avoid the hell of solitary confinement and sleep deprivation must have been apparent in my voice. At this point, my master smiled slightly, and said "Good slut. I think you've chosen wisely. I'm proud of you, for being willing to place your trust in me, and for being committed to being a better slut."
"Thank you, master."
* * * * *
After making that agreement, and after completing my customary morning duties for my master, he instructed me to return to my room and to pack a case. It was to contain all of the toys and sexy clothes that I had in my room. My master was going to take me to a secret location that evening - a place that he, and only a select few knew of, was all that he would disclose - but quite what was going to happen when I was there was to be a surprise. I was to get plenty of rest during the day, and I was to call upon my master again in the early evening, bringing with me a light meal. (Again, I was to present myself naked, save for my collar.)
Following my master's instructions, I put my nightie back on and lay down to get some rest. (Experience had taught me that it was unwise to ignore my master's advice.) I slept fitfully, as I was both excited and nervous about whatever was going to take place later. When the time came, I again stripped naked, donned my collar, and brought through some food to my master. As before, he told me to kneel, but then told me that there was one essential thing that we had to do together as preparation for later. But I was to remain on my knees and wait while my master ate.
After my master had finished eating, he explained to me something of what he had in mind, but warned me that it might very well seem odd - but suggested that it would be best if I just tried to put aside my natural scepticism and try to go with the flow. He explained that it was a pagan ritual; that he'd noticed that I was, at times, a bit reticent about following certain instructions - that while I did what I was told quite consistently, I was sometimes rather hesitant - and that if I participated in this ritual, and took it seriously, I would be much more naturally compliant.