Royal Flush Ch. 05

"Ooh, now please," Arete said immediately.

"Go on, let her see how much she's winning by," Euthenia conceded.

"What about you, Emma, you've been very quiet," Princess Charlotte said. "Do you want to know the scores?"

"It would be interesting to find out," Andrea conceded.

Princess Charlotte sorted out the slips, looked in her handbag for her calculator and, after a few minutes work, turned to the others.

"Well, at the half way mark neither Poohbear nor Noodles are in the lead. That honour goes to Emma's Snookums. The average marks across all three judges and all three categories is Poohbear, seven point eight, Noodles, eight point one and Snookums, eight point seven. It's still all to play for but Emma's Snookums is definitely in the lead."

"It looks like your Poohbear is the one in for a smacked bottom then," Arete commented to Euthenia who came back with "it's not over 'till it's over. Now, what are we doing about lunch? I'm starving."

"Well, give me a hand with the hamper then."

Euthenia and Arete dragged the hamper out from under the table and all four Dommes helped to lay the food out on the table. The range of salads, quiches, pies and cheeses was pretty impressive and the table was soon close to covered.

"What about the puppies?" Princess Charlotte queried as the hamper became all but empty.

"Oh, I put some bowls in the bottom of the hamper and that container there," Arete said pointing at a Tupperware box, "contains puppy food. Would you be a dear and sort that out for me?"

Princess Charlotte reached down and fetched out the bowls. Then she opened the container and scooped out the contents, dividing it equally among the bowls. Tamsin was getting concerned; she had read online about those who fed their 'puppies' canned dog food and, having once done an exposé of the pet food industry, she knew only too well the sort of 'meat' that went into those tins and was less than keen to be forced to eat it. However, when the bowls were placed in front of the puppies what was in them, much to Tamsin's relief, was a pasta salad with a rich tomato based dressing. Arete took the water jug and refilled the water bowls before sitting back down and starting on her own lunch.

"What lovely weather!" Andrea enthused. "One of the things I miss most about Paarl is the weather. It was nigh on perfect, neither too hot nor too cold."

"Yes, we don't get too many opportunities for outdoor play here in Britain so we like to make the most of it while we can," Euthenia put in. "If this warm spell continues you can be sure that Artemis will be arranging some pony events. She'll have your little one all bridled up and pulling a sulky before you can say Jack Robinson."

"That sounds like it could be... interesting," Andrea replied. "And do you share ponies the same way that we're sharing puppies?"

"Oh yes, that's all part of the fun," Arete added. "I mean, our little parties are mostly about the social get togethers but getting the chance for a bit of playful variation adds that certain piquancy, don't you agree?"

"Well, it was a bit quiet in Paarl and there weren't too many people with whom we could share our interests but, from what I've seen so far, I couldn't agree more."

"That's one of the advantages of this garden. After we've finished the contest, should you wish to take any of the puppies for a walk, please feel free to do so. You'll find there are plenty of nooks and crannies where you won't be disturbed if you wish to get to know the puppies more intimately."

"That's so kind of you. And, of course, should any of you wish to take Snookums walkies, well, I hope you'll find she's a very agreeable puppy. At least she had better be."

This last comment caused a certain amount of laughter but, as Tamsin looked up at the Dommes she could see that both Euthenia and Arete were looking back at her with lust in their eyes.

"That quiche is divine," Princess Charlotte said, bringing the conversation back to the food. "I assume the salmon is wild."

"Oh, yes," Arete replied. Monty caught it himself up in Argyll. I can't stand that farmed stuff. It's just not the same."

And with that the conversation wandered off into other matters.

Whether it was deliberate or not, Tamsin found that the 'puppy food' was rather salty and, to compensate, she was repeatedly drinking from her water bowl. She leant forward to do so at the same time as Poohbear and this made her glance across. Their eyes met and they both smiled. There was an understanding between them of the underlying eroticism of what they were doing. Tamsin's sneaking suspicion that the puppy food was salty on purpose was reinforced by the way that Arete kept refilling the bowls and, by the end of the meal, she, and the other puppies, had all drunk quite a lot of water. If it was intentional then it was Poohbear who was the first victim. As Arete gathered up the bowls and wiped off their faces Poohbear looked up and whined.

"Oh, Poohbear!" Arete exclaimed, "do you need to go walkies?"

Poohbear barked once for yes.

"And what about you other puppies? Do you need walkies as well?"

Noodles barked her assent and, realising that she might be in trouble if she didn't take this opportunity to go, so did Tamsin.

"Very well, then, I think I'll take all three of you together." Arete put the bowls down on the table and picked up the leashes that were lying there. She clipped each leash onto the relevant puppy and, holding them together in one hand, led them away from the table.

"Over here, by the quince tree. That will do. Now, be good girls, let's have you all nicely lined up."

Arete manoeuvred the three puppies until they were side by side facing the table. Then she ordered them into the 'beg' position and, with their leashes hanging down behind them, they knelt up in line. However Arete, always the perfectionist, was far from happy. She straightened up the line, nudged their knees farther apart until they were touching those of their neighbour and arranged their forepaws so that they were all at the same level as their shoulders.

"There, don't they look pretty as a picture," Arete said as, satisfied at last, she stood back to have a look at the effect.

"Perfect," Euthenia agreed. "We ought to keep them like that."

"OK, puppies, you can do your business now."

Tamsin wondered if she had ever done anything as bizarre as be part of this chorus line of puppies urinating for the amusement of others and the answer came back a resounding 'no'. However, much as Tamsin, under normal circumstances, would have found it hard to be able to pee in front of others, this scenario played straight to puppy girl's exhibitionist streak and she thrust her hips forward and pushed her knees as wide as they would go. As a child her mother had, as an admonishment, called her a 'mucky pup' and surely this was exactly what she was now. The four Dommes looked on amused as, fuelled by the bowls of water, no mere trickle but three full torrents flowed flowed out onto the grass before them. There was an inevitable amount of splashing and the sun-baked ground was unable to soak up the puddles that resulted but, as the torrent turned to a trickle and the trickle died away, there was nothing that a few moments with an antiseptic wipe wouldn't clear away.

"Oh, bravo!" Euthenia called out.

"Very pretty," was Andrea's contribution.

Although Princess Charlotte was silent Tamsin had noticed how she had watched intently and, for a fleeting moment, their eyes had met. As she returned to all fours and Arete reached for the baby wipes Tamsin wished that it were Princess Charlotte who was attending to her.

The three puppies were led back to the table but, with the meal now over, rather than returning to the shade they each went to their respective 'owner'. Tamsin knelt down next to Andrea in the 'sit' position.

"So, how about this obstacle course, then?" Euthenia asked. "I'm sure you're dying to show us how it's done. I'll bet a pound to a penny that you and Aergia... err... Noodles have been practising like crazy."

"As if we would," Arete joshed, "Look, there's quite a bit to fetch and carry. If you'll give me a hand, I've got it all hidden away in the summer house."

"Can I help?" Andrea asked.

"No, no, we'll be fine, really," Arete replied. "Have some more champers before it gets too warm."

"I gather Euthenia and Arete have known each other quite a while," Andrea said to Princess Charlotte as the other two bustled off.

"Oh, one way or another most of us have known each other since we were children. Lady Mary, for example, was head girl when I was just starting at boarding school. The original club was formed as a way of keeping in touch after we had left and, at first, you had to be an old girl before you would even be considered for membership but, as we all started to widen our social circles it seemed unfair to exclude some people's partners just because they went to a different school."

"So all this started back at school?" In her mind Andrea could already see the headlines.

"Well, not all of it. It was all a lot less... sophisticated back then, but the friendships, and some of the couples, yes, they go all the way back."

With a 'pop' Andrea's dream of the "Princess Royal in School Sex Scandal" headline disappeared. What's more, although they had finally met their quarry, so far her involvement was hardly newsworthy. Photos of the princess sitting demurely enjoying an al fresco meal were hardly going to rock Angus's boat, even if there were naked puppy girls in the background.

At that point Arete and Euthenia returned. Arete was pushing an overloaded wheelbarrow and Euthenia had her arms full of brightly painted wooden sticks.

"What on earth have you got there?" Princess Charlotte asked with a laugh.

"Everything, including the kitchen sink," Euthenia said ruefully as she let her burden cascade to the ground.

"If a thing's worth doing...," Arete started. "I had a wander over to Emma Thornton's place over at Lower End Manor. She breeds Black Labs and judges at Crufts so she knows what she's talking about. Anyway, she showed me some of her training gear and, after that, I spent some time in the stables with some of the bits from the jumps and, well, here we are."

"Emma, my dear," Euthenia said with an air of weariness, "do you remember that annoying girl from girl guides, the one who knew all the knots, who passed all the badges, the one who took it all far too seriously? Well, here she is full grown. Arete, you're impossible."

"Well, someone has to take it seriously otherwise nothing would get done. We all know why you joined the girl guides. The only guiding you were interested in was guiding your way into Sue Farthingale's panties...."

"Didn't need much guiding there. She was hardly terra incognita and joining her Tufty club was a lot more fun than doing first aid badges."

"Really, you two, if you could just hear yourselves. Squabble, squabble, squabble. Now, are we going to get this course set up or not?" Once again it was Princess Charlotte who stepped in.

Even then there was a certain low level but good natured bickering as Arete and Euthenia, carefully avoiding the wet patch by the quince tree, worked together to lay out the obstacle course. Arete wanted everything just so while Euthenia was more interested in just getting on with things. This nearly came to a head when Arete asked Euthenia to drive a series of three foot high stakes into the ground for the puppies to weave in and out of and, when this was done, complained that they weren't in a perfectly straight row.

However, for all the bickering, there was no malice and it wasn't long before the course was laid out. Arete had, quite clearly, put herself to some considerable trouble and even Euthenia appreciated this. Apart from the stakes there was a see-saw affair, a cloth tunnel and, as a jump was impractical, she had used some of the 'bricks' from the show jumping wall to construct a low bridge for the puppies to go under.

"So, who's going first this time," Euthenia asked.

"How about, as in show jumping, we start with the puppy with the lowest score," Princess Charlotte suggested. "That's your Poohbear first, followed by Arete's Noodles followed by Snookums."

All three Dommes agreed.

"OK then, if you're ready, off you go."

Euthenia led Poohbear to the start of the course and, on the way, plucked a bamboo cane from the flowerbeds where it had been supporting some gladioli. She used this to help guide Poohbear through the course. Calliope, in her role as Poohbear, wasn't particularly graceful and her generous breasts, whilst part and parcel of her feminine charms, didn't really go with puppy play. As she weaved her way in and out of the stakes they swung beneath her which rather ruined the effect. Euthenia, spurring her on with her enthusiastic use of the cane, didn't help much and, by the time she had finished the stakes, three of them were laying on the ground. As Euthenia negotiated the see-saw it was obvious that she was nervous and, when it teetered over as she passed the midway point she gave a very human cry of dismay. The cloth tunnel was pretty straightforward but, when she got to the bridge, she made a right muck of things. She was squeezing her way through when her hips touched and, after that, the stiff rubber tail caught and, before she knew it, the whole thing had collapsed around her.

"Well, the time's not too bad," Princess Charlotte said once she had finished laughing, "but three stakes knocked over and the bridge all down, that's eight faults if we're going by show jumping rules. Oh, and I'm not sure your puppy stayed completely in role as she went over the sea-saw so that's another demerit. Still, good try. Now, let's see how Arete does with Noodles."

Arete took the cane from Euthenia and used it to guide Noodles over to the start. As with earlier it was quite evident that they had been practising and that this was far from the first time Noodles had been through this course. Tamsin, possibly a shade biased, felt that, despite her skills through the obstacles, Noodles was a woman in puppy gear rather than a puppy girl. She didn't seem to have the spirit of the thing and there was no joy in what she was doing. After all, a real puppy would love nothing better than to show her Mistress how well she could negotiate the course; Noodles just seemed, like her Mistress, to be out to win for winning's sake.

And then, just when it was going so well and it looked as if Noodles would get a clear round, her tail, like Poohbear's before her, caught the top of the bridge and, although it didn't collapse, one brick tottered to the ground. Arete gave Noodles an exasperated look and was quite forceful with the cane as she led her back to the table.

"A superb time but four faults for the bridge," Princess Charlotte commented. "OK, Emma, it's your turn."

"Come along, Snookums, let's show them how it's done," Andrea said, standing up and leading Tamsin over to the start of the course. She unclipped the leash from Tamsin's collar, Princess Charlotte called out "Ready, steady, Go!" and Tamsin was off. Tamsin was quite fit and her slim, lithe figure was well suited to the course. Normally she rather hated her boyish shape, two fried eggs on an ironing board, as she saw it, but there was no doubt it came in handy for puppy play. In her heart she wanted to be the bouncy, exuberant puppy that she felt herself to be but, back in the real world, she was a human crawling on all fours so she was somewhat less graceful and agile. Still, she went through the stakes with no problems and, apart from a short pause as it tipped over, the see-saw was also easily negotiated. The cloth tunnel, whilst confusing to a real puppy, was nothing to a human one and that just left the bridge. She remembered how both Noodles and Poohbear had failed to get their hips down low enough but she was smaller, slimmer and ready to learn from their mistakes. Getting down as low as she could she wriggled through and, although the bridge did give a wobble, she managed to keep it intact.

"Oh, bravo!" Princess Charlotte called out. "Well done, Snookums, a clear round. Emma you must be very proud of her."

"Yes, well done, puppy," Andrea said but, noticeably, that was all. Tamsin felt that a true puppy Mistress would have given her puppy a bit of a cuddle for being so clever. Indeed, as she glanced around there was Poohbear knelt next to Euthenia who was holding her close and even Arete had Noodles's head in her lap and was stroking her. By comparison Andrea came across as cold and unfeeling. Tamsin couldn't help but glance at Princess Charlotte who had a thoughtful look on her face. She hoped that, now that they had finally made contact, Andrea wasn't, unwittingly, giving the game away. Andrea went back over to the table and sat down so Tamsin, to make it as real as possible, followed her over and laid her head in her 'Mistress's' lap.

"Anyone for any more champers?" Arete asked.

"Not for me," Princess Charlotte replied. "I've got to drive home and two glasses is more than enough."

"What about you two," Arete asked, waving the bottle at Euthenia and Andrea. "Neither of you are driving."

"Well, just a small one. I don't want to get too squiffy," Andrea replied and Arete topped up her glass.

"I guess it's pretty obvious which puppy was best in show," Princess Charlotte said. "Top in the puppy show and the only clear round in the obstacle course."

"Yes, Noodles and I might have to have a little discussion about coming second at some point," Arete said mock ruefully. "However, that's as maybe. I for one, have found the sight of our three puppy girls playing around to be most stimulating. We've had the puppy show, now it's time for the prizes. I seem to remember that the puppy who won first prize got to go walkies with Despoina but that's not the end of it. I'm sure we'd all like some time with the puppies. Emma, darling, that goes for you as well. Please feel free to spend some time with whichever puppy takes your fancy, or both for that matter."

"I might well do that but first," Andrea took Tamsin's leash, and put it in Tamsin's mouth. "Off you go, Snookums, go to Despoina, there's a good girl."

Tamsin knew that Andrea was encouraging her to go to Princess Charlotte so as to endear herself, so as to get closer, so as to find out the nitty-gritty. For Tamsin it was far more complex. The journalist side of her was, indeed, keen to get the story but that belonged to a more human aspect of her personality. Puppy girl wanted to get close to Princess Charlotte for far more carnal reasons. Whereas Arete was far too strict, Euthenia was far too frivolous and Andrea, quite frankly, hadn't got a clue, Princess Charlotte had, almost from the moment she had arrived, shown that quiet command, that mixture of control and compassion, that understanding that would make any puppy girl just want to beg to be played with. For the first time since they had been assigned to this story Tamsin was actually a willing participant and that made a huge difference. For once she didn't have to force a smile as she went over to Princess Charlotte, knelt up before her in the 'beg' position and lifted up her head to offer up her leash.

"Come along then, little puppy, let's see what the garden has to offer." Princess Charlotte stood up, took the leash from Tamsin's mouth, said "heel" and Tamsin went back to all fours and took her place at her new Mistress's side.

"What a good girl you are, such a well trained puppy. Come along," and, with a gentle tug of the leash, Princess Charlotte led Tamsin off into the garden.

Princess Charlotte had been here before; she already knew her way around the twists and turns as the grass paths that weaved in and out of the richly planted beds. She led Tamsin towards a south facing wall and, more pertinently, towards an alcove in the middle of which was bench made of stone. As they approached Tamsin could see that the seat of was not stone but a soft cushion of closely planted fine thyme. Princess Charlotte sat down and the heavy scent of thyme filled the air. Tamsin knelt before her and looked up into her face.