Her cheeks grew warm. “I’m not sure what you mean.”
Holly smiled with a lovely warmth. “It’s perfectly normal not to know. Come with me,” she said, leading her around a curving corridor with pale gray walls and light yellow accents. There were occasional pieces of tufted silk art in soft colors. “Submitting to someone more powerful can be simply the yielding of the body. Many, many women do that. Wives, mistresses, girlfriends, and prostitutes all do to varying degrees. Most, though, are not suited for a deeper submission, a relinquishing of control that is more complete. Only a very few of us have that capacity.”
Brande was silent, weighing the woman’s words. Holly described submission as if it were a talent.
“We get many letters of application because as with all things where the demand is higher than the supply, the rewards of being suited to an unconventional life are considerable. The compensation though is directly tied to the sacrifice of the submission. A human pet lets go of its autonomy. And in some cases, its comfort.”
Brande didn’t speak when Holly paused. She wouldn’t have known where to begin with her questions.
“Here in the center, we do things in stages. It begins with an examination, and with exercises in exposure and presentation. The most important thing to remember is that you have only one responsibility, which is to learn about yourself.”
Holly opened a glass door and entered a room with walls of a very pale blue with white trim. A round cushion mattress sat on the floor with a pair of pillows and a fluffy stuffed rabbit. There was a small white chest of drawers and a polished white decorative screen, behind which was a commode, sink, and bathing stall.
“You’ll have a few moments now to yourself. You’ll undress and refresh yourself. When I return, you’ll relinquish the clothes you’re wearing and all the possessions you brought with you. They’ll be kept safe for you.”
“Are the clothes I’m to put on when I remove these in the chest of drawers?”
“There are no clothes to put on. The exposure and presentation of your body is the first assessment phase.”
Brande became very still. “And I’ll be fully nude?”
“Yes.”
Brande stared at Holly. “And I’ll remain that way for my entire stay?”
“You’ll remain that way except for the times when clothes are provided and you’re told to put them on.”
The flush in Brandese’s cheeks deepened, her heart thumping wildly in her chest. “I see.”
“You’re beginning to,” Holly said with a soft smile. “What we do here mimics the types of experiences pets have once placed.”
Pets! Dead realms! This is happening.
“Take a few moments to consider,” Holly said, then she exited through the door.
* * *
Brande stood nakedin the center of the room when Holly returned.
“You’re resolved?” Holly asked.
“Yes,” Brande said, though her heart was still a wild beast slamming against her ribs.
“Very well,” she said. “We’ll take some images. These are for practice. Eventually there will be some in various poses that will be shown to potential owners, if you’re deemed suitable for pet life.”
Holly took some snippets of still and moving images. Brande tried to shield her face and had become incredibly stiff and nervous over the prospect of being captured in such a way. What if her identity were uncovered and the evidence were used against the royal family? What if it led her father to find her? The consequences would be incredibly severe.
More severe than being married off to a brute and being banished to a savage world?
No, probably not.
Also, they wouldn’t allow a scandal to erupt, she told herself. Her father had a lot of resources. It would be dealt with.
He would still know, she thought and shuddered. That must never happen.
Compared to the image recordings, learning to present herself was easy. Taking positions where she made herself small on the floor weren’t so unlike bowing to her father as a child.
“Very good. Your movements are quite elegant, particularly the way you extend your arms like they’re floating to the floor. Lovely. Have you had training?”
