The Collaring of Chloe Ch. 40

The Collaring of Chloe

Chapter 40 - Between the Idea and the Reality

**Characters and text are protected under copyright law

"I think it's like when you make something useful out things you would normally toss out, like turning emptied pickle jars into drinking glasses, or whatever."

Chloe gave a little nod, to show that she followed Mittens' explanation of what 'repurposing' was. It was what the new couple they'd met earlier did for a living; 'repurposing'. She had actually seen items like that herself, such as a rather quaint little loveseat that someone had built out of the rear end of an old car, though she thought the given term for that was 'upcycling'. She supposed they were the same concept.

"Is that all they do?" She asked, imagining something like that as more of a hobby than a career. "Is there really a big market for that?"

Mittens gave a little shrug. "No idea." She gave a mischievous grin. "Though she did say that one of the things they do is make is sex toys. I'm gonna try and see if I can convince Master to order something from them. Hopefully, something interesting." Chloe caught the grin herself, imagining some pretty intriguing ideas.

She'd expected Mittens to grill her more regarding August, but the cat-girl had seemed as though she preferred to just avoid that subject for now. As much as she and August had gotten along previously, Mittens had still not forgiven her for slapping Chloe or creating so much grief. Most likely, she simply didn't want the evening to get taken over by voicing concerns about her, but Chloe felt certain that Mittens would be watching August very carefully for a long time.

As silly and affable as Mittens might be normally, she was very protective of the people she loved. Chloe had never forgotten the sight of the petite cat-girl leaping onto Chad's back in that parking lot, battering him furiously with her fuzzy fists. Of course, oversized plush paws were not the most devastating of weapons, but her ferocity and courage had been something to behold.

It was just another reason why she wanted to stay with these two amazing people. They made her feel like she could get through anything. The idea of growing old with the two of them, never feeling alone ever again, was the most wonderful thing she could imagine anymore. For all that Mistress Victoria could give her, she could never give her the sense of belonging that Master and Mittens gave her.

She looked over towards where Master was gathering some items from their bag. He'd given the two of them a little extra time to just sit and relax together, before he started the next planned scene. She wasn't quite sure what he had planned, but it looked like it was going to be pretty fun.

"Any idea what he's preparing?" She asked Mittens curiously, noting that what he was pulling out was various restraints, a leash, and a ball gag.

"Nope. But I think it has something to do with Mistress Victoria." Mittens said, tapping the tip of her chin with a fluffy finger.

Chloe looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "What makes you think that?"

"Something she mentioned before she separated from us earlier." Mittens replied, eyes narrowing a little as she thought on it. "That she would let him know when she had everything ready."

Chloe blinked. Was this about the offer for her ownership? She must have subtly let him know that she wanted to talk to him about something. If that was the case though, why would he be getting out his restraints? Something didn't feel quite right all of a sudden.

Before she could fully wrap her mind around that, he came over to them, carrying the various straps and items, as well as a number of tiny padlocks. "Slave. Stand before me." He said to her, his tone formal, but not harsh. Without really thinking, still a little confused, she rose from the floor and stood obediently before him.

Before she could even think to try and ask anything, he gave another command. "Open your mouth." When she again obeyed without hesitation, he put the ball of the gag between her teeth and had her bite down to hold it in place while he turned her and buckled it on her, locking it place with one of the padlocks. He then set about the task of adding more restraints, binding her arms behind her back and to a waist belt restraint, putting cuffs about her ankles and linking them together with a short hobble chain, and locking everything firmly on.

Finally, he attached the lead to her collar gave her a once over with his eyes. Taking a moment to brush a stray lock of hair from out of her face, he gave a nod of approval to his work. "Okay, I think that should do." He looked to Mittens. "Are you properly recovered, my pet?" He asked her, his voice caring, but still with that strange formal timbre to it that made Chloe even more confused.

"Yes, Master." Mittens said, looking a little curious herself now. She stood up and, seeing that he'd brought a leash for her as well, automatically turned and lifted her hair so that he could attach it to the back of her belled collar.

Once she was put on her own lead, he turned her back around and looked her in the eye. "Full cat mode, until I say otherwise." He said, a slightly mischievous smile peeking onto his face.

Mittens immediately shifted in physicality, body becoming fluid in motion and she raised up her paw-covered hands, elbows bent. It gave her a more feline aspect, though also made her look all the cuter too. Chloe recognized it as the 'neko' pose from Japanese pop culture. She supposed it was intended as a kind of compromise, so she didn't have to try and awkwardly walk on all fours.

Despite her staying otherwise upright, the rest of her aspect become pure cat, her movements and expressions mimicking that of the animal's. She even began to make rather impressively convincing cat noises, purring and meowing. She took a moment to rub against Master, receiving a moment of having her head scratched and petted, before suddenly moving over to nuzzle Chloe with all the usual flightiness of a real cat.

Master lead the both of them over to the toy bag, which he'd taken the time to repack before coming over, and slung it over his shoulder. Giving PapaBear and Butterfly a small nod, which they returned to all three of them, he then guided his bound slave and cat-girl out into the hall. They navigated their way back to the lounge area, Master keeping a strange sort of air about him, back straight and expression imperious.

In the social area, they found Mistress Victoria already waiting for them, sitting casually on the back of a male submissive while she chatted with what was likely his Domme. When she spotted them, she rose and took a moment to help the subbie up, praising him on how well he'd served her as a stool. He seemed to melt a little when she gave him a little peck on the check, before asking the Domme to please excuse her.

She stepped over to Master, her own posture and demeanor becoming just as crisp as his. "Everything is set up in my private quarters, Master Brooksend. I thought we could conduct our business there."

"By all means." Master replied with a small nod of his head. "I'm quite curious to see your proposal."

As she began leading them towards the stairs, Chloe's brain started spinning at high speed. Master already knew that she was making a proposal of some kind, not just wanting to talk. It struck her that Victoria had possibly already contacted Master before they'd even left to come to the playhouse, letting him know about her intentions of making an offer for Chloe.

If that was the case, was that part of why she'd been noticing strange reactions from him tonight? He'd said nothing at all about it to her, obviously not to Mittens either, who, despite her 'pure cat' state, was showing very obvious curiosity herself. If he'd already been forewarned of what Mistress had planned, she'd have expected him to have taken the time to broach the subject with them. The drive over in the car would have been a perfect time for it.

Her mind continued to spin as they ascended to the second floor and down the hallway to the Mistress' private stairs. She became more and more convinced that Master already knew about Mistress making an offer for ownership of Chloe. He'd trussed her up in an official capacity, showcasing her as his slave and property, for this. And, in that same intent, had also gagged her so that she could not speak.

That logic suggested that he wasn't going to allow her to give her own thoughts on the matter. A strange, deep, part of her thrilled at the notion, providing a heady rush of excitement. However, another part also trembled in worry. Did he also know that she was already aware that Mistress was planning this? Had the strange reactions he'd shown all night been suggestions that he'd felt a little hurt by her silence?

A small knot began to form in her belly, a regret for not having told him about it herself. It had been one thing when she'd not known what her own desire on the subject had been, but she chastised herself mentally for not having finally said something once she'd sorted it out. What if he now didn't give her the chance to let him know how much she wanted to remain his? What if she'd insulted him by never saying anything at all? She'd become some fixated around the idea that he would ask her opinion, that the thought that he might not do so hadn't even crossed her mind as a possibility.

He'd remained ahead of her the whole way, denying her any ability to catch his eye and give him any sort of meaningful look or indication. Or, at the very least, to help her better gauge what he was thinking. She kept playing moments from the night over in her head, trying to imagine them from his point of view.

Why had she relished burying her face into Mistress's crotch so much? What if that had sent a wrong message? What if he assumed that as evidence that she wanted to be sold?

She tried to convince herself that he would still likely remove the gag to allow her some way to give her feelings on things, most probably just before the end. It was probably just some ceremony for her benefit, to help make it seem more official before he allowed her a moment, out of role, to say her feelings on things. Master loved making a show of things, creating a mood for a scene. Mistress was the same way. Surely, this was just them creating a bit of theatrics.

Surely...

As they came up into the loft area, Chloe could see a something sitting in the middle of the main room, where Mistress had previously had her ornate 'throne'. It was rectangular, sitting on a tri-pod stand, and covered by a cloth. She assumed it as some kind of presentation board, which gave a momentary bubble of amusement, despite her worrisome thoughts. Leave it to Victoria, a career lawyer, to have create some kind of 'Exhibit' to illustrate her offer.

As Mistress went to the covered object, Master brought his slave and cat to stand in front of it, Mittens dropping down to take a cat-like seat at his feet. She gave a questioning little meow to him, lightly pawing at him. Her curiosity at what exactly was going on seemed to be bad enough to make her strain a little at maintaining her 'cat-only' state. She had also obviously noticed the distressed state that Chloe was going deeper and deeper into and was showing some signs of worry. It was obvious she wanted to check on her beloved, but also could tell that Master's manner suggested that this was not a time to defy his instructions.

Chloe took the opportunity to finally take in Master's expression, able to see his face for the first time since they'd left their dungeon room. His expression was so plastic, it could have been a literal mask, blank of all sign of thought or emotion. It gave nothing away, nor did his gaze falter from showing full attention to his fellow Dominant peer. His eyes were fixed straight forward, seemingly oblivious to the anxious looks his submissives were giving him.

"I spent a lot of time thinking about this, James, and this is what I am offering." Mistress said after a moment, seeming to steel herself as she took a hold of the edge of the sheet. There was a strange stress in her own expression, possibly because she hoped whatever she'd come up with would be worthy of taking possession of Chloe.

She pulled away the sheet to reveal, not some kind of presentation board, but a framed painting. It was breath-taking to behold, a beautifully rendered scene of two women, both depicted as mostly naked, save for trappings that showed their roles in relation to one another. One knelt on all fours before the other in a pose of complete submission, her kneeling body covered in red petals that were pouring from her back. Other than the flower petals, she wore only a collar and restraint cuffs. Her hair concealed most of her face, but it was evident that tears were falling liberally from her eyes.

The other woman stood over her, clad in nothing but a pair of heeled shoes and cincher. One of her hands hovered just over the other woman's bowed head, suggestive of granting some sort of blessing. From her other hand dangled a long strap of leather, the loose end also dripping beautiful red petals from it.

Whomever had painted it had managed to capture not only the mean detail of the scene itself, but infuse it with an almost religious flavor, garnering both spiritual reverence and sexual ardor. As a viewer of it, she could feel not only the love between these two women, but beauty of what must have transpired just before. It was a truly amazing piece of art.

Master too, seemed startled by the sight of it, but his surprise was from recognition of the piece, not from the scene itself. "Vic! Your original Balenitto? That's worth almost ten thousand dollars. I was expected something more..."

"Symbolic?" Mistress supplied for him. "Trust me, James, this is as symbolic as it gets. You know what this painting means to me personally. What I went through to obtain it. I wanted to make sure you understood how serious I am about this. I offer this because it means so much to me; to show how much I want this."

Master seemed completely speechless, just staring at the painting for a long moment, seeming taken aback. Beside him, Mittens was having an even harder time staying in role, her confusion almost too much for her now. She seemed uncertain whether it was worth even trying to make a significant 'meow' sound to try and get their attention.

Finally, Master gave a little chuckling sigh, shaking his head. "That...that is a very overwhelming offering, Victoria. I do still think it's a bit over the top, but you know that I have always loved this piece myself." He paused, staring a moment more at the painting, before giving a nod. "Very well, your offer is accepted."

Chloe felt all the warmth fly out of her body like a flock of startled birds. The small knot in her stomach grew into a heavy weight that made her belly hurt. Her head swam at the revelation that he'd just sold her and had seemed glad to do so. All without even paying her a single glance to see if she wanted this or not.

Inside her mind, she began to berate herself for having never said anything to him. He must have known that she'd known. Had taken her silence as a sign that she didn't want to stay with him. All her craziness over the last couple of weeks, the emotional moments, her dragging them halfway across the country without a good explanation, must have made her seem incredibly flaky and unstable. Likely the whole drama with August hadn't helped much either.

She could feel herself beginning to tremble, a terrible heat welling in her eyes as tears began to fill them. She'd not taken her chance to say her feelings and now...now...

All of a sudden, she realized that, for maybe the very first time, she truly understood what it meant to be a 'real' slave, without any control or power over what happened to her. This had been what she'd been fighting for all this time. To have this feeling, this moment. It struck her as so absurd, to finally be given the very thing she'd asked for, only to feel so bereft in the face of it.

In her mind, the storm of emotions and thoughts and regrets all began to swirl like a vast whirlpool. It spun everything together, drawing it all down to a single word; a word sealed away from being spoken by both the gag in her mouth and her own overwhelming state of dismay.

'Sunflower'.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Master's gaze shift to her, as if summoned by the mere thought of the word. It was as if he'd somehow heard the silent cry of her mind. He turned fully towards her, turning her to face him as well. His face filling with compassion and understanding as he took her face gently in his hands, his thumbs tenderly caressing the tears from her cheeks. "My dear, beautiful slave, don't worry. You still belong to me."

The words left Chloe momentarily stunned. She blinked at him in complete shock and confusion. She still belonged to him? But, hadn't he just agreed to sell her for that painting? Despite her inability to fully comprehend what had just happened, a massive flood of relief poured through her. It was followed immediately by a soaring feeling of love for this man and that he'd instantly known that she'd reached her limit emotionally.

Behind Master, Mittens seemed at her limit as well, so confused by what was going on and desperate to be able to stand up and help console the woman she loved that looked like she was about to go crazy. She gave a very pointed. "ME-Yow?!"

Master cracked a smile and looked back towards her and gave a nod of his head. "You can come out of 'full-cat' mode, Mittens. I think Chloe needs a little extra support at the moment, anyway."

Mittens wasted no time bouncing up to an upright position and moving quickly to Chloe's side, wrapping her arms around her. "Can I ask what just happened, Master?" She asked in a ragged voice. Choe realized her worry for sister submissive was so much she'd begun to cry.

Mistress Victoria was who answered, moving up to the other side of Chloe, reaching around Chloe to softly pet Mittens and her other hand alighting on Chloe's shoulder. "During the days when Chloe was left in my care, I became very attached to her and I felt a compulsion to make an offer to buy her from James. As much as I respect James, I thought Chloe might be better suited, given her desire for a deeper intensity of feeling like a real slave, under my collar and ability to provide that."

She gave Chloe a kiss affectionately on the temple, dropping the arm she's used to pet Mittens around the slave's waist. "The day he came to pick you up, I decided to tell James about my intentions to buy you from him." She said, voice low and soothing. "I could tell that you were conflicted when I brought it up to you, Chloe, unsure if it was actually what you wanted. I also knew that you didn't intend to forewarn him of my desire, out of your desire to be the 'proper' slave. I decided to give him the chance to gauge your emotions himself between then and now."

She gave a little chuckle, glancing amusedly at Master. "However, he immediately told me 'no'."

"You belong to me, Chloe." Master said, his eyes strong and comforting. "But more importantly, I love you. I could never sell you any more than I could ever agree to send away Mittens. However, I realized that you needed something more. And I agreed that it was something that Victoria could give you. A depth of intensity that just isn't in me to deliver."

"So, he told me that he would entertain a different proposal." Mistress continued. "We negotiated for a couple days on what he was willing to offer and this was my offer in exchange for it. As much as he probably would have accepted something much less profound, I wanted him to see that my commitment to things was very real and how much I appreciated what he was offering me."