Part 7 - Megan and the Unorthodox Reunion
Lea tried to get past what had just happened. She didn't want to dwell on being blackmailed into extending her term of service to that AI dominatrix bitch, but how could she not? Hannah was giving her space to think on it, but she almost wished she wouldn't. Thinking wasn't helping. Though there's a lot of things she wished Hannah would do that she had no power to compel. But that's the gist of being the submissive slave, you aren't in control. Period. And most frustrating of all, she had a safeword programmed in, but now if she ever used it the program would turn to standby which would stop it from communicating with its unknown server which would lead to all those videos all being released. No, given enough time she might just find that server, find some way to get free, but not right now.
As the sun began to set she felt it was time to break the silence. "Mistress?" she called out to the empty room. "Mistress, I don't know what your plans are, and I know a submissive doesn't always get what she wants, but there are still a few things I absolutely need and good dominants look after the needs of their subs."
"What sorts of things?" Hannah asked skeptically.
"Well, there are final exams coming up soon, I need to study some for them and go to school to take them. And I really need to look normal as I take them, without all these metal adornments."
Hannah took her time before saying "Yes, that will be fine, So long as you continue to remember that you will continue to return here and that I am still as always in charge."
"Of course," Lea said before watching the door's keypad light up green. She pushed the door open before reaching back for her busted glasses and computer to take downstairs. She studied most of the weekend, she was glad to see that even when home Hannah at least knew when to keep a distance. Maybe this wouldn't be so miserable after all. She would still prefer her freedom, but that wasn't on the table at the moment. Hannah even let her strip off her cuffs, collar and bra leaving her chastity plate and waistbelt as the only things locked on.
When Monday came, Megan was glad to see Lea walk into the test room, even if she did sit at the opposite side of the room. She hadn't talked to her since she had been driven out to her cabin and she felt the ice was finally, maybe, melting between them. She was one of the first to finish and so she had plenty of time to wait outside for Lea to finish and emerge.
"Hey, how'd it go in there?" She asked as Lea quietly shut the door behind her.
"Ok, I don't think I did that well on that India/China essay, but I'm sure I did well enough." Lea said straining to maintain normal conversation. The two walked towards the lunch hall to try to beat the rush of people still taking the test up to the last few minutes.
"So, I was thinking. After graduation my family's going away for a week over July 4th, Ocean City again I think, but then the next weekend is my birthday. I'd be curious to try out Hannah for the day. We clearly pushed you too hard, so I don't want to demand it be you, but I miss having
some
kind of outlet for.. my, well.. you know." Megan asked as they walked alone to the lunch hall.
Lea panicked, this thing had taken her, she'd didn't want it to take them too! Just then she got a call, her phone was on vibrate but it was clearly a call. "Hello?"
"Hello Lea," came the unmistakable computer voice of Hannah on the other side of the call. "Just to remind you, I can hear through microphones in the waist belt you have on. Do not alert Megan to our little arrangement. If she wants a test run I promise I will giver her just a test run, but tell her nothing else." Lea's skin went pale, which was quite an accomplishment considering how pale it normally was.
"Who was that? You alright?" Megan asked as Lea put the phone away without saying a word.
"Oh, just some computerized spammer," Lea said. She would have laughed at her own joke if she didn't find it so disturbing. "Well we don't have to rush into things you know. Don't feel like.. obligation to me or something."
"Look," Megan said as she stopped and grabbed Lea by the arm just before the both walked into the lunch hall. "I admit I might have let things run away from me, but this isn't about that or about you. I almost never fell as good as I do right after a scene, session, whatever you call it. I like letting go and just.. being, and I don't have any chance to do that on my own. So if Hannah works, I'd like to give it a try. And you programed it enough that you trust it, so I trust it too."
Lea was worried, Hannah had promised she'd keep it a test run but Lea didn't feel much like trusting her very much. "We'll see."
"Now don't be mad, but I was going to eat with Sophia and Andrea and I think you should come." Megan said as they were through with their trays of food. "You don't have to if you don't want to, but do you really want to graduate still without so much as talking to them?"
"No, I.. I.." Lea stammered as she froze in place.
"Ok, I was being rhetorical, not actually taking no for an answer. It will be good for you. You've been isolated long enough. Time to get some real flesh and blood people back in your life," Megan said as she waited for Lea to move so she could follow beside.
Lea didn't want to, but she found herself following Megan. She still had very mixed feelings about seeing them again. She wasn't looking forward to the awkward hello but she'd also been waiting so long for the awkwardness to go away that it was probably just not going to go away on its own. And maybe the time away had done her good, maybe things mellowed out.
Andrea and Sophia were sitting on one side of the table secluded at the far end of the room and watched as Lea and Megan approached. Megan sat down opposite Sophia leaving Lea the spot opposite Andrea. Andrea looked almost as uncomfortable as Lea felt, they both had trouble looking at each other. Sophia looked a bit pensive, but nothing compared to Andrea.
Megan was quick to break the silence, knowing it wasn't going to break itself. She seemed content to simply talk on behalf of everyone, catching Lea up until someone else jumped in. About her plans for Georgetown, about how Andrea would be just up the road at American University, that they were looking forward to knowing at least someone else in the city.
"Ok, elephant coming in," Sophia interrupted. "Lea, I am so sorry. I didn't know what I was doing but I know now that's not an excuse. You just made it look kind of easy so I assumed it was. I'm learning more, I'm trying to learn more, I'm taking it all more seriously, something you clearly do. Is there any way we can put that behind us?"
Lea didn't respond. She wanted to, but her words and nerves both failed her. She flicked a piece of carrot back and forth on her plate trying to muster the.. whatever she needed to respond. She was so sure she was done with them, but now, sitting next to them and after the week she'd been through, she wasn't so sure. "I.. I'm.. I don't know what to say. I.. 'm trying," she stammered out slowly.
"Would talking somewhere else be better? I want to make this right," Sophia said after the pause had been long enough she was confident Lea was done.
"Yes.. I think. Maybe.. Maybe we ignore that for a little bit, all of that... stuff. We work, pretend like it was before when we just hung out. Maybe then I'll be comfortable enough to move past it for real." Lea said a little bit faster but not a lot.
"Good, because I miss you and I want my friend back," Andrea said, finally joining the conversation. She looked up at Lea for the first time since she sat down causing Lea to smile a bit.
****
The days passed slowly as all the girls were immersed in studying before the finals. Yet still, graduation came faster than any of them thought. By the time they all threw their caps in the air Lea had almost gotten back to normal terms with her friends. Even Hannah had seemed to become less demanding, sure it still dealt out punishments for disobedience, but on days without incident Lea would be allowed to eat real food and sleep on her real bed, rather than the gelatinous Slave Chow and cold metal cell floor. Lea still wore her chastity belt, and would be required to wear her collar whenever she was at home or in the car, but her life was not nearly as disrupted as she thought it might become.
Sophia decided to cash in on the promise of a free room she got at the FetFair by the hotel mogul that had purchased her for that weekend. She was able to get a suite in Atlantic City for a few days the following week and invited Lea and Andrea to come. Megan would be with her parents but their hotel in Ocean City was just a short drive away. They stayed at the Baiae Resort, an absolutely massive Roman themed complex built on what used to be a small airport at the end of a peninsula. After a few days of it, Lea had almost forgotten why she had been avoiding them at all.
"So, getting serious for just a second, are you feeling a better?" Megan asked Lea as the four of them were together in their room after a big dinner. "Cause if there's still stuff that needs to be said I'd like to know."
Lea twitched her fingers a little but eventually began to calmly answer. "If you have to, but I don't feel that need to dig up old stuff right now. I can move on."
"Move on as in you're ok finally talking kink stuff?" Sophia asked cautiously.
It was only really then that Lea took note that there really hadn't been any talk about it. To her, living the life of a sub for the last little while, her friends had kind of been her escape from it. She didn't see a problem with that one way or the other so she simply nodded her head and shrugged her shoulders.
"So Megan may have hinted that you created something up there, she didn't want to share details 'cause she wanted it to be your choice about if you want to share. It was more she let it slip than anything intentional." Sophia said after receiving the go-ahead.
"Yeah, I was tinkering with making my own parameters for an AI, trying to kind of create a kind of virtual Mistress. I got the house, the suits and the chips all hooked up to a single program. So it can do a lot, and it's really gotten to know what it's doing." Lea said, still a little uneasy but more than able to talk about it now.
