Chapter 8: Southwark

Julia found Raven Courten’s Southwark premises relatively easily and took the old-fashioned lift to the basement. She confronted Jane in Raven’s reception area.

“I’d like to speak to Ms Courten,” she said. “It’s about Sir Henry and the workshops.”

Julia’s rather formal manner convinced Jane that she was not going to be fobbed off. She buzzed through on the intercom to Raven’s parlour. “It’s Ms Fain, Mistress. From the Ministry. She was hoping to see you.”

“Of course,” the voice crackled from the other end. “Please send her in.”

Julia had been very uncertain of what to expect but, apart from the racks of punishment and restraint equipment, Raven’s parlour turned out to be more homely than she had imagined a dominatrix’s den to be. Raven greeted her at the door and showed her to a comfortable couch. She looked surprisingly normal, more so than on her visits to the office, wearing a loosely-fitting, v-necked, black, cashmere sweater and pale cream slacks. In contrast with Raven’s normality, on the far side of the room, in a small cage, Julia could see a man, naked except for a rabbit-eared hood, crouching. It was, she assumed, Sir Henry.

“Would you like some tea?” Julia nodded. “I’ll get Jane to make it.” Raven looked across the cage. “I’m afraid HE’s not coming out of there until he has learned to be a little more accepting of some ideas.” Seeing Julia’s startled look, she went on, “You can talk freely, his ears are plugged. He’s been gagged too. I’m afraid I got quite cross with him.”

Julia wondered what he could have done to upset Raven so.

Hernry, from his uncomfortable position within the cage, could see that Julia and Raven were talking but he had no idea of what was being said. It was a disturbing experience.

“Is that Henry?” Julia asked.

“Yes.”

“Good. It’s him I want to talk about.” Julia had decided that the best approach was to come straight to the point. “I understand that Sylvia agreed to allocate him to the workshop programme. Can I ask how important it is that Henry should take on that role?” Julia leant forward anxious for Raven’s response.

Something in Julia’s manner made Raven think that she didn’t want her to insist on Henry continuing to take part. “Not at all if you think something else might be better,” she said. “If I’m honest it might not have been the best choice. We’ve had a long ‘relationship’ if that’s the word and I’m not sure the dynamics of the new situation can be made to work. He’s not finding the new circumstances easy to go along with at all.” Raven struck out with a leather spanking paddle against the side of the cage, it made a sharp sound sending Henry cowering back as far from the bars as he could get.

Julia was relieved. The discussions was going better than she had hoped. “Well, if you don’t need an experienced submissive, I’m sure I can make someone else available from my team.”

Raven smiled, “All submissives are experienced once they’ve spent some time with me. But maybe a newcomer would be a better idea if that’s possible.”

“I’d like to help the programme any way that I can. I’m planning to start sponsoring, so it’s a great opportunity for me.”

Raven and Julia’s conversation was interrupted by Jane and the arrival of tea things.

“I’ll be frank,” Julia went on. “You’re sure he can’t hear me?”

Raven nodded. “I’m sure.”

“I’ve been thinking of taking Henry under sponsorship. I was hoping that you could provide me with some advice on setting up my flat for accommodating a sponsored male. I thought it might be helpful to the programme; to have somewhere as an example of how the typical woman might take on sponsoring. After all, this,” she waved her arm around Raven’s well equipped dungeon, “is hardly a typical environment for your average sponsor.”

“You are right, of course,” Raven responded, looking at the array of punishment instruments on one wall and the chains, cuffs, hanks of rope and other items of restraint alongside them. That alone would be sufficient to intimidate most submissives. “Actually, I suppose this place is better equipped even than most professionals’ premises.”

“So, what do you think? I can have a replacement for Henry by next week.” She knew who she would send. The recalcitrant Andrew Garfield should be ideal.

Raven smiled. She felt Julia was adopting a sensible approach. And after all, Sir Henry deserved someone that could keep an eye on him, even if he’d been misbehaving today. “I’ll be happy to help,” she replied.