The Collaring of Chloe Ch. 08

Chapter 8 -- A Cat Named Mittens

**Characters and text are protected under copyright law

"There's no way it was only fifteen minutes." Chloe said for perhaps the twentieth time.

Master laughed patiently, despite having fielded this comment twenty or so times in the last couple of hours. "I sat there with a watch." He pointed towards the cupboard beside Chloe's head. "There's a loaf of rye bread in there. Fetch it for me."

Doing as told, Chloe opened the cabinet, taking down a half loaf of pre-sliced rye bread, still shaking her head yet again at the disbelief of it. Her little 'nightmare' alone had felt longer than only fifteen minutes and the time after, spent savoring the feeling of Mittens pressed against her, had felt like hours passing. If he'd told her that they'd spent a whole day bound up in 'The Void' she might have accepted it, but only fifteen minutes? It seemed impossible.

"Master's never put me in, as a punishment, for longer than thirty minutes before, and that was for something really serious." Mittens said as she carefully tended a small frying pan, in which a trio of piles of corn-beef slices covered in Swiss cheese was softly cooking over low heat.

"Honestly, I try not to use sensory deprivation with Mittens, even if not as a punishment." Master said dealing out slices of bread onto plates. "Even when used as part of other play, she's never reacted well. Had it been just her and not had you there to take some kind of solace from, I would have put her in for only a couple minutes, at most. For her, more than enough to work as punishment."

"Wait, you use it for more than just punishment?" Chloe asked, a bit intrigued.

Master grinned. "Actually, until I saw how Mittens reacted with it, I'd never even considered using it as a punishment. Removing senses from a sub makes the remaining ones left to her far more powerful and sharp. Used effectively, it can be a powerful bit of play that can make for some intense sensations."

Mittens gave the slabs in the pan a shift before looking over at them. "Usually though, the idea is to provide some kind of input to help guide the mind. For instance, instead of headphones that just remove all sound, use ones where all you can hear is mood music. Maybe also insert a vibrating egg to send a constant flow of sexual stimulation."

"I realized, however, that if you remove all senses, create a 'Void', then the sub's only input is psychological." Master added as he began opening jars. "Again, depending on how you emotionally seed the event, it can still evoke different things. Honestly though, I wasn't even sure if you'd have a bad reaction to it. I more hoped that presenting it as 'punishment' would draw out negative emotions and make it something that felt like punishment for you."

"With me though, it's almost always negative." Mittens said in a somewhat small voice. "I don't like the feel of being so isolated and alone. Even when Master has tried to make it a fun experience, I have trouble."

"Thus, it became my punishment for Mittens whenever I needed to discipline her." Master looked to his Pet, his expression showing something like regret. "To be honest, I sometimes consider retiring it. You sometimes seem so emotionally wounded from it."

The little cat-girl shook her head at him. "It okay, Master." She said in her 'cute' voice, but with a note of seriousness. "I doesn't likes it, but I's always okay and always glad to sees Master after." A soft, loving, smile punctuated the words. "It a good punishment for when I's been bad."

There was a long, almost heavy, silence for a moment, like a sadness between them. Feeling a bit uncomfortable, Chloe felt a strong desire to break the quiet. "Okay, you said the longest was for something really 'serious'. As much as both of you obviously don't like using it, what would make you put her in so long?"

Master gave a little grin turning his attention to back to smearing some mayo on the slices of bread. "She bit a 'Dom'." He said with a chuckle, giving a slight emphasis to the last word.

"She what?!" Chloe goggled at the cat-girl, who in turn ducked her head a little as she pushed the little piles around the skillet.

"He said some really ugly things about Master." Mittens explained with a grimace. "I overheard him and, well, over-reacted."

"It was at a play party about two years ago, or so." Master elaborated as he spooned sauerkraut onto three of the slices of bread. "A couple of people were in the kitchen talking, apparently about me, and the man who was leading the conversation didn't realize that Mittens had come in. He said some things that just pressed the right buttons and Mittens ran over and...well, sunk her teeth right into his arm." He gave his head a shake, chuckling a little.

"You just bit him?!" Chloe asked her, still shocked by that detail.

"I dunno." She answered sheepishly, giving a shy little shrug. "I were mad." She added in that cute cadence she was so good at.

"I heard the commotion, mostly the Dom screaming out in pain, from the other room." Master looked pointedly at Mittens, who was looking abashed, though his expression was one of smiling affection. "She'd recently had her cat-teeth put in by that point, so she drew some pretty serious blood. They were still new, so I don't think she remembered that they were there and that it might do some serious damage."

Chloe's mouth dropped open in awe. "Oh my God!"

Master chuckled, turning his attention back to preparing the bread. "I think she didn't mean to hurt him really, just reacted without thinking. She was really angry about the things he was saying, but I think she regretted it almost immediately."

"Master had me 'pologize." She said, still sounding sheepish, but her smile returning. "But I don't think I was the only one that he offended with what he said." She looked conspiratorially at Chloe. "And I don't regret it." She said in a faux-whisper.

Master carried the large platter with all the bread slices prepared on them over to the stove. "Apparently a few of the community Elders talked with him privately on my behalf and we haven't seen him at another event since. Still, I feel that Mittens could have handled the moment better, especially considering the teeth."

Chloe peered at the two of them curiously. "What was he saying?"

Mittens began scooping the three piles of meat and cheese from the pan and onto the sandwiches. "Just some mean stuff about Master, suggesting that he wasn't a good person." She said evasively, looking at Master, a strange expression in her eyes, but he just gave her an affectionate caress on the head, a gesture that seemed to silently say 'just let it go'. "Anyway, Master felt I needed a serious punishment for actually injuring someone, so I spent a full half hour in the Void. It felt like an eternity though."

Chloe just shook her head at it all. "Well, my experience wasn't pleasant, but I don't think it affected me as bad. I'm sure Master will eventually figure out something that serves as my 'ideal punishment' though."

"Hopefully I won't need to for a while, slave." Master said with a smile. "Now, let's have some lunch." With that, he led them into the dining room with the platter of enormous Reuben sandwiches, Chloe grabbing up a big basket of potato chips. Chloe's stomach was growling menacingly at the wonderful aroma of the food and she couldn't wait to dig in.

They'd spent most of the rest of the morning after the punishment down in the Dungeon discussing what sorts of play Chloe liked and didn't, much as Master had said they would. He'd even let her try a few things out, though they'd not really made significant use of anything. Still, he'd given them both plenty of affection and attention, making sure that there was no doubt that the punishment was over and past them, everything now settled. Finally though, they realized that it was after noon and lunch was in order. Instead of just having his girls make the meal, Master had decided to keep things casual and elected to help them whip up some sandwiches, deciding on Reubens when he learned that Chloe had never had one before.

The sandwiches were incredibly delicious, Chloe wishing she had a second one, even if she wasn't sure she had room for it. While she ate, she thought again of the memory she'd relived while bound. She had not told them about it, but she could remember it very clearly, shocked at how fully she'd fallen into the moment. It had been like she had returned to that moment in time completely, forgetting everything that happened to her in the two decades that had followed that memory. She could still feel the heartbreak of it, both from then and the fresh sense of it she felt for that little girl of the past.

Now back in her adult mind, she thought again of her perception of that day and her overall understanding as a child of her Aunt. She understood better now that Nina had not been a bad person or even an uncaring one. She had simply been a self-absorbed person, generally unaffectionate with everyone in her life, not just her. Though she could remember no time when her Aunt had openly spoke the words 'I love you' to her, there was little doubt that Nina had loved her niece. She just showed it by providing well for her and giving her a very comfortable life.

As Chloe had grown older, their relationship had improved in some ways, the two of them able to converse in more adult manners, which was the only way that Nina knew how to. By the time Chloe had been old enough for college, they'd reached a very pleasant place together, Chloe able to recognize the kindness that her Aunt had shown to her simply by taking her into her life at all. For all the lack of emotional connection Nina had with Chloe, she'd never once let Chloe feel like she'd been any sort of burden or regret.

However, it didn't change the fact that she'd never really seen Chloe as 'hers', just 'the niece she took care of'. And despite all the later wisdom and perspective she'd gained over the years, the pain of that seven-year-old girl hearing that she didn't belong to anyone and having never been shown the needful affection and compassion of someone was still a raw one. Perhaps it was why it had come welling up, even after all these years.

She forced the thoughts away, not wanting to dwell on them anymore. Whatever neglects, real or perceived, she'd felt from her childhood, she now felt she was somewhere she was meant to be. Though she still wore only the delicate ribbon around her neck, announcing her as 'Pending Slave', she already felt as though she wore Master's true collar and was his. She wanted to tell him that she didn't need the two more days she had to wait for it to be official, but was sure it wouldn't matter. She just had to be patient for a little longer and then he would be the only one who could end her enslavement, as she felt it should be.

As they leaned back in their chairs, relaxing a moment while their lunch settled, Chloe looked at him. "What would you like me to do today, Master?"

"Well," He said at length, leaning forward again. "once you've cleaned up, you and Mittens can take some time to yourselves, relax a bit." He stood up and stretched. "I need to do some business for a bit, unfortunately."

Chloe looked at him with a note of surprise. "You do?" A moment later, she quickly added. "Master."

He paused a moment, grin on his face, obviously noting her little 'slip', but not feeling it worth commenting on. "Yeah, most of the time it all takes care of itself, but occasionally I have to deal with some things. It will just be a few hours though. After that..." He paused, as if considering the matter, then smiled broadly. "After that, we can go for a drive. Show Chloe the city."

Mittens clapped her paws excitedly, bouncing in her seat. "Yay! Can we show her Papa-bear's, Master?"

Master laughed, reaching up to rub the bridge of his nose. "I don't know if she's into all that stuff, Mittens." He started, but gave a little sigh as her face fell comically. "But, I suppose she should meet Papa-bear himself." Mittens immediately brightened and resumed bouncing and clapping her paws.

"Papa-bear?" Chloe asked absently, not really following.

"He from the local community and a friend of Master's." Mittens bubbled. "He gots a toystore!"

"It's actually a comicbook shop." Master said with a laugh. "But he has all kinds of toys, games, and other things from popular culture and geekdom. He lets Mittens play with things."

"I has him wrapped 'round ma paw." Mittens added, waving a plush hand.

"She really kind of does." Master said with another laugh.

"Well, it sounds like fun, Master." Chloe said, smiling more at Mittens' excitement than anything else. While she wasn't really that interested in comic books or toys that much, she didn't find them completely uninteresting either. All in all, it did sound like a fun place to visit, even if just to see Mittens running around at play.

As Master took his leave of them, Chloe scooped up the platter and now empty chip basket, then the two girls headed back into the kitchen, quickly cleaning up the lunch preparation. Once all was squared away, they went up the stairs to the second floor, headed for Mittens' room. She'd already seen it once, though it had been with it mostly darkened, lit only by the light from the hall as Master had put her to bed the previous evening. As they entered, now lit with afternoon sunlight, Chloe marveled at the room, finding it to be completely what she might expect from her fellow submissive.

In a lot of ways, it seemed almost like a child's room, full of bright colors and a fair assortment of different toys, dolls, and stuffed things. However, there was an abundance of evidence that it belonged to an adult, sexual creature. There was framed erotic art mounted on some of the walls, a decidedly large pink vibrator sitting on a colorful nightstand, and a framed photograph of her and Master hanging next to her bed. In the picture, they appeared to be engaged in intercourse, Mittens astride him, her back arched, the nipples of her breasts taunt and aroused. Like everything else in the house, it had a strong artistic feel to it, a black and white shot, perfectly framed and composed, but there was a frankness to their expressions that made it beautiful. Mittens' expression especially added power to the picture, as it suggested that she was right on the edge of climax. Considering that Chloe had seen that very expression on Mittens before, struggling to hold back her orgasm on the sybian, she felt all the more certain that the picture was less posed that taken candidly by a very a talented photographer.

"I call that '10 Seconds Before I Screamed'." Mittens said with a giggle, noting Chloe's interest in the picture.

"Oh?" Chloe replied, looking at her with an amused grin.

"Yep." Mittens grinned. "Because, ten seconds after that picture was snapped I had a massive screaming orgasm." She held out her paws as far as she could, as though indicating the actual size of the climax.

Chloe laughed, despite having seen the comment coming quite clearly. It was less the comment itself than the look of utter pride and joy that was on the young woman's face as she said it. "So, you really had sex with someone just standing there taking pictures?" Chloe couldn't decide if that sounded embarrassing or very arousing.

Mittens looked at the shot with a loving reverence. "It really wasn't quite like that. Well, I guess it was exactly like that, but not that simple. It was...beautiful." She brushed a paw across the glass of the frame. "Originally, it was just going to be a posed erotic picture, Master knows this great photographer. She took all the ones in the playroom too. This one is my favorite though. We'd gone through a bunch of different poses and then Master just sort of...slipped in."

She went over to the window, pushing it up to let some of the afternoon breeze in. "It was like we forgot anyone else was even there. It was slow and tender, like getting lost in each other. The photographer started to leave when she realized what was happening, you know, to give us a little privacy. Apparently, this sort of things happens a lot." She gave a little giggle. "But then she just sort of started taking shots again. She said later that it was just so powerful, so intimate, that she just had to get it on film. She took about twenty shots, but this one, we all agreed, was the best. I asked Master if I could keep it for myself."

As she listened to her, Chloe felt in awe at the reverence with which Mittens spoke of the picture, seeming lost in the power of the memory it evoked. "You really love him." She said quietly.

There was a long pause, Mittens moving back to the picture. "He saved me." She said softly, reaching out to brush the glass of the frame again with her paw.

"Saved you?"

Mittens turned, smiling brightly, and looked at Chloe a moment before reaching out a paw for her to take. "Come on, let's lay on the bed and cuddle."

Chloe blinked at the seemingly random comment, then smiled and nodded, the two of them slipping onto the large, soft bed. At first she assumed that the abrupt decision was intended as a deflection, was ready to let the subject change, but as they settled into each other, Mittens began talking in a quiet tone. As she spoke, she nuzzled into Chloe's grip a little more, as though needing the sanctuary of it to get through what she said.

"My momma was a really horrible person. There was never anyone but me and her growing up, I don't think she even knew who my daddy was. I don't have any real memories of her when she wasn't drunk, though I don't think it got really bad until I was school age. She was always saying terrible things to me though. She was never very physically abusive, at least not beyond occasional slaps or throwing stuff at me at times. She was always too drunk to be really coordinated though, so most of the things she threw would miss and she didn't really hit very hard or even very often. Mostly it was verbal abuses she sent my way, telling me about how I was this huge burden that ruined her life, saying that she wished she'd gotten an abortion, calling me ugly, that sort of thing."

Chloe felt her breath go away as the very first sentence, shocked at the thought of dear, sweet Mittens having to endure such a painful childhood. She held the young woman a little tighter, began petting her head softly, but said nothing, letting her tell her story.

"Most of what money we had was from welfare and food stamps. Momma also had disability, though I don't know for what, beyond being an alcoholic. What we did get wasn't really much, so we never had much of anything nice, usually didn't even have electricity. Luckily the trailer we lived in was paid for and was parked on this lot where either the owner was letting us stay for free or just didn't know we were there. Most of the real money went to booze, with her using it up faster and faster as I got older. If not for the food stamps, I think we might not have had anything else to eat."

Mittens paused a moment, seeming lost in the memories and Chloe waited patiently, cradling her tightly in her arms. "By the time I was around six or so, Momma never really left the house." Mittens said after a few moments. "She just spent all day in a chair or on the sofa, drinking. I learned to take care of myself, got up for school on my own, would do what shopping needed done with what I had to do it with, and generally cleaned up after her."

Chloe pictured the heartbreaking image of a six-year old Mittens walking alone to a store for groceries every day and felt an urge to bite someone herself. "When I got a little older, I figured out how to pay a few of the bills." Mittens continued on, seeming not to notice the storm of emotion raging in Chloe. "That helped us have electricity more often than not for a while, but Momma eventually realized she didn't have enough to buy her booze with and tore into me one night. It was one of the few times she ever really got physically abusive, but really nothing worse than a lot of slapping and verbal abuse. Still, she left me huddled in a corner of my room crying so hard I thought I was going to die from it.