“Leonard, are you up for a session?” Danielasked.
Leonard’s smile broadened and looked at Ryan, sizing him up. I knew where his head was going. He had in his mind he was going to play with my apprentice. I could see his wheels turning as he switched gears to Top mode. I could tell Daniel picked up quickly on the fact that Leonard had thought we were there to negotiate a session for him andRyan.
“I’m interested in topping you, Leonard,” Danielsaid.
It effectively put a look of disappointment on Leonard’s face as he realized he wouldn’t be playing with Ryan. Leonard blinked a few times and looked between the three ofus.
“Since Ryan is a novice and under the care of Russell, I thought this would be a good opportunity for him to observe our negotiations,” Daniel informedLeonard.
I had appreciated the fact that Daniel took the time to reiterate that Ryan was under my care. Then it all clicked in place for Leonard; he switched gears to his bottommode.
“Are you interested in a flogging session?” Danielinquired.
“I am interested in a session with you, Sir, but I’d rather have the wooden paddle over the flogger,” Leonardcountered.
Daniel nodded and confirmed, “An impact session with the wooden paddle sounds fine. I will focus on striking your ass, but are there any areas on your body that I shouldavoid?”
“No,Sir.”
“Will the spanking bench be alright withrestraints?”
“Yes,Sir.”
“What is your safe word,Leonard?”
“Red,Sir.”
Daniel motioned for Leonard to follow him, and as they headed to the play room, I turned to face Ryan. I wanted to see what his thoughts had been on the negotiations and see if he had picked up on key points that made it a successfulnegotiation.
“Okay, Ryan, did Daniel clearly express what type of session he wasoffering?”
“Yes, aflogging.”
“Good.” The corners of his mouth turned upward into a small smile. “How did Leonardreact?”
“Politely. He told Daniel that he wanted a session with him, but that he wanted a different type ofsession.”
Challengehim.
“And is that okay? Should Leonard have spoken up as he did, or should he have accepted it if he had really wanted a session withDaniel?”
Ryan’s eyes moved from side to side as he thought. His lips formed a tight line and his dimple appeared.Come on,Ryan.
“He should have spoken up.” Ryan said while staring at my chest. His eyes were still moving and he began to nod. He finally looked up at me and with confidence said, “You said a bottom, or sub, needs to be honest and care about themselves to not be intimidated into a session that they really don’twant.”
“Good, Ryan!” I clasped my hand down on his shoulder and jostled him. “I’m glad that you noticed the polite and respectful manner in which they conducted themselves. What about safety? Was thatacceptable?”
Ryan lowered his eyes to my chest again and they began to move from side to side. He’ll look at my chest when he’s concentrating. It’s a way for him to focus instead of letting his eyesroam.
“Yes,” he said, again with confidence and made eye contact with me.Good boy.“Daniel asked Leonard what his safe word was, and if there were any places that he should avoid on hisbody.”
“Why is thatimportant?”
“In case he has some injury, so Daniel doesn’t cause damage. Or if he’s sore from another session, that Daniel doesn’t aggravateit.”
“Good. Why else it that an important question to ask abottom?”
I knew I was reaching by asking him this because it was more of a mindset for a Top or Dom to give a lot of thought to, rather than a bottom. But a challenge was healthy for him to be pushed to think outside the box. His forehead wrinkled and he lowered his gaze to my chest again to think. He struggled and was stumped, so I gave him ahint.
