Chapter 21: Birthday Presents

Her eighteenth birthday was rapidly approaching, marking the point at which she would join me as a recognized adult, at least in the eyes of the law. I wanted to mark the occasion for her, making it as memorable as I could. I didn't want to just get her a present, or have her name tattooed on my arm. I wanted the occasion to be as personal as I could make it, and to mark it as something special between the two if us.

An idea finally germinated in my mind, and as I worked on it, it began to take better shape. It certainly would be personal, it would certainly be something very close and special to both of us, and I was sure she would remember it for a very long time, if not for life. The problem was that I needed the assistance of a very special and potentially difficult person in order to turn it into reality. I thought about it for days, and then realized that the only way to make it happen was to take the bull by the horns, and deal with it.

At my first opportunity, I grabbed a cab into town, and walked through the door of the adult toy store. For the first time, I was now legally permitted to be here, since my own eighteenth birthday had been a few months before.

As I headed down the aisles, Clara ran up and grabbed me in a hug, then kissed me soundly. As we caught up with each other, she kept looking behind me, and I finally had to explain that my love wasn't with me. To soften the look of disappointment on her face, I gave her my personal thanks for the work she had done on the Christmas 'mural', and especially for the hidden piece of candy cane.

We both had a good laugh over that little episode, and then she asked why I was there, and what she could do to help me. I explained that I had come to see her Mistress, if that were possible. Clara led me to the back of the store, then into the storage area and finally to an office in one corner. She knocked on the door, then opened it and announced me. I heard the Mistress tell her to show me in.

Clara closed the door behind me as I entered, and the Mistress stood. Instead of shaking hands, she gave me a warm hug, and showed me to a chair, commenting that she was surprised that she had not seen me for a long time. I reflected that the warmth of her greeting would probably disappear once I had explained a few things to her.

She asked how I had been, and inquired after my 'little slave, ' and I told her that the slave was the main reason for my visit. "I am actually here to ask for your assistance on a project. First, however, there are some issues that need to be dealt with, and I need to tender you a very large and sincere apology on behalf of both myself and my little slave."

She looked at me inquiringly, with one eyebrow raised. "How is it that you could owe me an apology? I do not recall that you have done anything that would merit such needs."

"That's part of the reason. In effect, you were deceived by the two of us. The reason that you have not seen either of us for a long time was intended as a means of mitigating that deception. Legally, we all could have been in trouble if events had not unfolded in quite the right way."

She looked even more puzzled now. "I still do not understand. What did you do? Or, what do you think you've done?"

I took a deep breath, and then started the explanation. "When we first entered your store, about eighteen months ago, we did it as part of an exploration of our sexuality. We had undertaken a sort of 'research project' in order to learn about sex, and about all of the different aspects of it. We knew that as part of it we needed to look into dominance and submission, bondage, and so on. That meant going out and investigating those aspects, and we picked your store as a good place to conduct that research. One of the big advantages of your store was that it wasn't your typical seedy place in an industrial park. You cater much more to everyday people, and treat sexual play between partners as normal and aboveboard."

"I thank you for the compliments, but I still don't see what the problem is."

"You will in a moment. You see, your establishment can be considered as an 'adult toy store' because of the nature of the merchandise it sells. For us, the problem was the 'adult' portion of the category. You see, we're both high school students. At the time of our first visit to your store, we were only sixteen." Her expression hardened as I spoke, and her eyes narrowed. So far, those were the only outward signs of her anger at the deception.

"We showed fake ID cards to Clara, who did ask us to prove that we were old enough. We also used a little distraction, in the form of my little slave's breasts, which, as you know, are fairly large. She didn't wear a bra that day, and left a few too many buttons undone and that helped convince everyone that she was old enough. There was an automatic assumption that if she were old enough, then I was even older, and therefore my age was beyond question."

The Mistress's face had frozen into stone, and I knew that my grave had been dug. It only awaited the coffin, so I began to furnish the nails for it. "As you are aware, we have been into the store several times, and have participated in several scenes, during which she's been whipped, and I've been whipped. We both thoroughly enjoyed those scenes, and we have both learned from them. We both acknowledge your extraordinary skills, both as a dominant, and as a master of the whip.

"After those sessions, we realized that coming here wasn't really safe for any of us. For us, it probably wouldn't have amounted to much more than a fine, unless we had been caught in the middle of a whipping session. For you, we realized that it could have been much more serious, and could have resulted in the closure of your business, and potentially even heavy fines or jail time.

"It was never our intention to cause harm to anyone. We were trying to learn as much as we could about sex, and about sexual behaviours and sexual experiences. In our defence, we are young, and young people don't always think through the consequences of their actions. I am here to sincerely apologize for our past behaviour, and to ask your forgiveness for what we did, and to hope that we can possibly have some kind of future relationship."

She stared steadily at me, her visage stern and stone-like, and I didn't know whether to say anything more. I was fairly certain that anything else I said would simply be another shovel of dirt on top of the coffin, so I stayed silent. She stayed like that for long moments, then quietly asked, "So, are you now of age, or should I have Clara escort you out?"

"My eighteenth birthday was a couple of months ago. Hers is in just over a week, which is why I'm by myself."

"Before ... you said you wanted my assistance with something. What was that?"

"It's ... Well..." I was verbally flailing around, more from fear than anything else. I finally took another deep breath, then straightened up and said my piece. "I want to do something special for her birthday, something that she will remember for a while. I was thinking of another session with you, and possibly Clara. The last time she was whipped by you she experienced some very strong orgasms, and I thought that you could whip her again, possibly with me assisting, or even participating. We could even let Clara participate somehow, because I know she really likes my little slave, and loves to tease her sexually."

She nodded as I spoke, taking in what I was verbally describing. "Is there anything else?"

"Well, that's pretty much as far as I had thought things out. I was kind of hoping for your assistance in completing the theme, since you are the true expert in these scenes." A sudden thought occurred to me. "Oh, there was one other thing ... we have both been a little concerned about the public nature of the exhibition area in the store. It's another reason why we haven't come in for a session. We've been worried about someone with a cellphone taking photos of her while she's strung up, or being whipped. If they got out, it could be very damaging to all of us."

Her eyebrows shot up as I spoke about cellphone cameras, and a troubled expression crossed her face. She quickly reached for a pen and made a few notes to herself. A moment later, she asked, "When did you want to do this?"

"Friday night, next week."

"And she will be over eighteen by then?"

"I guarantee it. Her birthday is on Thursday next week."

She thought for a moment or two more, watching me the entire time. She finally seemed to come to a decision. She reached for a business card, and wrote something on its back, then turned to me.

"If you have truly done some research, and taken it to heart, then you know that in my world things are very black and white. You are either right, or you are wrong. If you are right, you may never know, but if you are wrong, you are punished. If you fail to carry out instructions correctly, you are punished. If you transgress, you are punished. However, punishment is never meted out immediately upon the discovery of the error, for there is too much risk of anger entering into the mix. Anger and punishment do not mix, for permanent harm can result.

"I am not angry with you. You are young, as you say, and young people make mistakes, for that is how they learn. I am disappointed, although you do now realize what could have been the severity of your actions. I will have to think about these events. There should have been a punishment, but much time has passed since the event, and your apology shows that you have realized what you did, and the wrongness of it. There may be a time when you do something else that requires punishment. If so, I will expect the two of you to take your punishments as adults, for that is what you have become. Agreed?"

"Yes, Mistress. I am in your debt for your acceptance of our apologies, and will do my utmost to ensure that the need never arises in the future." I held her gaze with mine, our eyes locked.

Her stern manner disappeared suddenly, as if the matter of our transgressions and any retribution was a different subject altogether. "Now then, as to this other matter ... your 'birthday present' to your slave, as it were. I have a basic idea in mind, and the week ahead will give me sufficient time to refine it. You needn't worry about the public aspect of the exhibition space here in the store. I have another location for events such as you require. It is quite private, and completely soundproof." She smiled at the last remark, and then extended her hand to give me the business card. "Be at the address on the back, at 8:00 PM on Friday next. Do not be late." She smiled again, but only her lips were involved. "Tardiness will be punished."

I decided that getting out of her office quickly would be the best thing to do at the moment, so I stood and nodded my head toward her. "Yes, Mistress, we will be there on time. Thank you for your time."

"Good day, my young master."

I didn't tell her right away that I had something planned for her birthday present. Her parents would be taking her out on the day itself, since it was a special event; my parents had taken me out on my birthday, and made a big deal of my coming of age. I didn't want anything to detract from the celebrations with her parents, so all I told her was to keep Friday evening open.

I debated with myself over the following week, constantly thinking about how to present her, how to have her dress, and whether to tell her exactly what was going to happen. In the end I decided not to tell her anything in advance, since that might take away from things. I also didn't really know what the Mistress had planned; that part was truly unknown territory. I did finally settle on one aspect—I would collar her just before we entered the Mistress's facility, to ensure that it was known that she was my slave, and therefore my decisions about her would hold sway.

When the day arrived, she was full of questions about what we would be doing, but all I told her was to dress casually, and to wear a blouse and skirt. I let her know when we would be leaving, and she arranged to meet me in front of my house. I had booked a cab to take us to the address, which turned out to be on the edge of a commercial district. The building was fairly non-descript, and the door was unmarked except for the address beside it.

Just outside the door, I stopped and turned to her. "I have set this up to be my gift to you on your birthday. I wanted it to be something memorable; however I don't actually know exactly what will happen once we are inside. Part of it will be a surprise to me as well as to you." The look on her face was quite interesting, as it seemed to be a combination of excitement, trepidation, and uncertainty, but with an overlay of trust. I only hoped that the trust wouldn't be misplaced.

As a final step, I took her collar out of my pocket and held it out in front of her. Her look changed immediately to one of naked fear. "I am going to collar you for your protection, and to assert to everyone that you are mine. This is a declaration to all that you are mine, that I love you, and that you are under my protection. Will you accept it, and wear it for me?"

She stepped close to me, placing her neck in front of the collar, and holding her hair out of the way so that I could buckle it on her. When the buckle was closed, she started to drop to her knees, but I caught her and held her up. From my pocket I took out a small padlock, and sealed the buckle with it, to ensure that no one except me could remove the collar.

I put a finger through the ring on the front of the collar and pulled her face to mine. "You are my slave until I release you from your collar. My will is your will, and no one controls you but me."

Her face lost all expression, and in a flat voice, she replied, "Yes, Master."

I released the hold on her collar, and cupped her face in my hands. "I love you. Remember that." I kissed her hard, then stepped away and took her hand in mine. I checked my watch to see that it was one minute before eight, and I opened the door.

We walked down a short hallway toward a lighted area, and stepped into a remarkable sight. The room looked exactly like a medieval dungeon, with rough stone walls, torches in wall sconces, rough wooden beams, and chains hanging everywhere. The room was at least twenty feet on a side, and the ceiling was cloaked in darkness so I couldn't tell how high it was.

As I looked around I could see a couple of large cages in one corner, and a wall display filled with whips, crops, floggers, clamps, and other devices. There were posts anchored in the floor, various types of crosses and pillories, and different styles of wooden benches. All of these were made of thick wooden pieces, and were securely anchored to the floor. Many of them had leather straps, or metal cuffs attached to them. I could see that anyone shackled to one of these would be firmly held, and incapable of escape.

"You are prompt. That is good." I turned toward the voice and saw the Mistress walking over from one side, coming out of the shadows. My eyes locked onto her, as she was dressed quite differently from anything I had seen before. Her hair was pulled back into a severe ponytail, riding high on her head. Her breasts were encased in a tight leather halter with chains hanging from it, and her hips were covered by a low-riding leather miniskirt. Her outfit was completed by knee-high leather boots on five-inch heels, and leather sleeves that ran from the back of each hand to the elbow.

The rest of her was bare, and I realized for the first time that she had an amazing figure. Her breasts were large and seemed very firm, her waist was very narrow, and her exposed belly was flat and rippled with muscle. Elevated by the stilettos, she was quite an imposing figure as she strode over to us.

Trailing behind her was Clara, although a Clara I had not previously seen. Her hair was twisted into a tight braid, and coiled on top of her head. She was naked, save for her collar and cuffs on her wrists and ankles. Her skin was gleaming in the torchlight, and I assumed that she had been rubbed down from head to toe in some kind of oil. She was beautiful, displayed in all her glory, and fully subservient to her mistress.

The Mistress stood before us, looking over the two of us. She seemed to almost be dismissing me as she gave me only a quick glance. Her gaze locked onto my slave who lowered her eyes submissively, and stared at the floor. A hand reached out to her collar, and a finger went through its ring, lifting the slave's head until their eyes met. She stared into her eyes for a long moment, and then spoke. "For this evening, you are mine, little slave. Your Master has asked that I treat you to an evening that you will not soon forget. We will begin now." As she released the hold on the collar, she said, "Oh, and Happy Birthday, little slave."

In an almost inaudible voice, she answered, "Thank you, Mistress."

The Mistress walked over to a wooden frame in the middle of the floor and started adjusting it. Her voice easily carried throughout the dungeon. "Slave, prepare them for me."

Them? I wasn't sure if this was an error, or if I had misheard. Clara walked over to the two of us, and started to undress my little slave. She looked at me and said, "Please Master, remove your clothes. The Mistress requires that everyone be naked in her dungeon except her." I didn't react right away, but just stared at her as she was removing the little slave's blouse. She glanced at me again, and said, "Please, Master ... she will punish both of us."

I still wasn't sure what was happening here, but decided not to anger the Mistress. In the back of my mind I thought that this might somehow be part of the evening's 'festivities' that she had planned. I started taking my clothes off, following Clara's lead as to where to hang them. I wasn't embarrassed by my nudity, as both Clara and her Mistress had seen me naked before, but I was concerned by the seeming lack of protection that nudity caused me. I didn't think I needed to be protected from anything, but then I also didn't know what the Mistress had planned.

When my slave was naked, Clara put the last of her clothes away, and returned with her hands full of leather bindings. She put cuffs on the slave's wrists and ankles, fastening them in place with buckles. I could see that these were heavy-duty cuffs, much wider than normal, but they were also lined with very soft leather, so there would be no chafing. My slave didn't react during this process, accepting what was happening to her. When she was properly attired, Clara led her over to the Mistress, then returned to me.

"Please Master, come with me."

"Where are we going? I need to be here to observe, and to protect her."

"Do not worry, Master. We are only moving over there..." She pointed to a spot off to the side from where we were standing. " ... you will have a complete view of everything that happens."

I allowed her to lead me to the indicated location, but started to object again when she backed me up against a thick wooden post. "Please, Master. It is required that you stay here, so that you will not interfere once Mistress begins. She is concerned that you might get in the way, and either be hurt, or cause inadvertent injury to your slave." She looked up at me, and I could see the emotion in her eyes. "Please, Master. I do not want to see either one of you hurt."

I gave in to her, remembering that the Mistress had told me that my love would not be harmed, although I was beginning to wonder if perhaps I might be hurt. Clara guided my hands to each side of the post, then fastened my wrists to the post with tape. When I looked down, I could see that she was using ordinary masking tape, which I could break with the slightest movement of my arms. I looked at her inquiringly, and she smiled a little. "You are being secured symbolically, so you will still have full control should you decide that your slave needs your protection, or that you should intervene in the activities."

When she was satisfied that I was properly 'restrained', Clara moved to stand in front of me, pressing her entire length to me, and rubbing her breasts, belly, and crotch around on my body. Her hands caressed my shoulders and arms, and then moved onto my chest as she stepped back slightly. Her hands continued their traversal of my body, sliding over my abdomen and down to my groin. One hand held my penis in a firm grip, while the other began to massage my scrotum, playing with my balls, and occasionally closing on them, sending warning signals to my brain.

The hand on my penis was sliding slowly from one end to the other, gently masturbating me and bringing me to a full, hard, erection. Clara looked down at the results of her actions, then into my eyes. In a low, breathy voice, she spoke to my core. "I am to keep you ... entertained ... while you watch what happens to our little slave. I'm going to have lots of fun, because you have a nice body, with good muscles. And you've got a really nice cock." She gave the item in question a firm squeeze at the same time as she tightened her grip on my balls; I didn't know whether to be aroused, or scared.

"I'm not allowed to make you come. I'd love to suck you deep and drink everything you can give me. My Mistress says she'll punish me if I do. I'd really like to fuck you 'cause I really like your cock. I can just bend over and back up to you and take you really deep into my pussy. Would you like that? Would you like to fuck little Clara? You wouldn't have to move ... I'd do all the work."

Her words and her actions combined to give me a raging erection. Her fingers were dancing along the length of my penis, playing me, and keeping my arousal at its peak. I knew from what she had said that this was all part of the plan, but that didn't make it any less difficult.

While Clara was tormenting me, I was doing my best to watch what the Mistress was doing to my slave. She had guided her over to a large wooden frame that was raised a foot or so off the floor. The frame was mounted in a skeletal steel enclosure; this seemed to allow it to pivot or move somehow, but I wasn't sure. The Mistress helped her climb up into the frame, and stand on its lower edge. She attached her ankle cuffs to each side of the frame, then had her raise her arms over her head, and attached her wrists to the sides of the frame. She was now spread into an X-shape, but seemed to still have some freedom of movement.

The Mistress's next actions took away all of that movement. She played with a few levers, and one side of the frame moved away from the other, forcing the slave to be spread wider and wider. I heard a clunk as the side of the frame was locked into position. The bottom of the frame suddenly lowered, then locked, so she was now being supported only by the cuffs that held her extremities tightly spread. I saw her struggling a little, and could tell that she no longer had any freedom of movement.

The Mistress was speaking softly to her, and I couldn't make out the words, but she was moving her hands all over the rear of the slave's body. She firmly caressed the insides of her thighs, then massaged the globes of her ass, and ran her flattened palms along her entire back. I heard some kind of mechanical click, and then the Mistress spun the frame so the slave now faced her.

She continued her physical examination by taking a breast in each hand, and squeezing them quite hard, watching my slave's face for her reaction. As the breast massage continued, she worked her way to the nipples, pulling on them and twisting them in her fingers. I saw the slave's face wince at the pain, then a little cry escaped her lips as the torment of her nipples increased.

The fingers finally let go, and the hands continued moving over her belly, and down across her mound, then onto her thighs. One hand moved back up, cupping her vulva, and squeezing it firmly. It pulled back a bit, and a single finger slowly entered her, pushing deeply into her. I heard her moan from across the room, and again as the finger withdrew, to be joined by another, and to push deeply again. The action repeated, this time with three fingers, and the thumb came to rest on her clit, rubbing it firmly. As the hand withdrew again, and a fourth finger was added, I began to fear that the Mistress was about to try fisting her. The hand only pressed inward until resistance was felt, but it did twist sideways, spreading her juices all around, and ensuring that her pussy was fully engorged, and in full flower.

Satisfied that she was ready, the Mistress spun the frame again, and my little slave was now facing sideways to me. I had a complete view of her in profile, but her arms prevented her from turning her head to see me. The Mistress walked over to a rack and selected the implements she would use, placing them on a table to one side of the frame. I saw a few strands of leather dangling from her hands, but I could not tell if there was only a single flogger, or if she had picked up other whips.

The Mistress picked up the first whip, and shook it out. I could tell by the size and shape, and the behaviour of the strands, that it was a soft flogger. The knowledge helped to calm my concerns, as I knew that this type of whip was mainly used to stimulate, and not to hurt, or punish. The Mistress looked over at Clara and me, and smiled a little when she saw Clara's hands at my crotch, then turned her attention back to the slave, and started swinging the whip.

The first few strokes were fairly soft, almost gentle in their caress of her back, and her ass. The strikes began across her shoulder blades, and then worked down along her back, spending more time on her ass, and then moving to her thighs. The return journey took the same amount of time, but the strikes were a little harder, and as they crisscrossed her ass, I saw the slave's head lift as she reacted for the first time. She didn't appear to be in any form of distress; in fact, her face seemed very calm, although her breathing began to deepen ever so slightly.

The whip was moving quickly, and striking firmly by this time, and I imagined that her back was now getting sensitized. Blood would be flowing outward to her skin, awakening all of the nerves, and giving it a flushed look. The Mistress spent a little extra time on her ass and thighs, making sure to reach the inner sides of her legs, and getting the sensitive skin there.

Clara was giving me my own version of sensitized skin, as she was running the very tips of her fingernails all over me, using very little pressure, but it felt like her nails had been filed to sharp points. When she gave my uncovered glans the same treatment, I felt my hips involuntarily lurch outward to her hand. She smiled at me, and whispered into my ear, "We'll have to do that some more. I can see you like it a lot." A moment later her nails dragged over the entire length of my penis, once again sliding over my glans, and I moaned with the feeling. "I think that's enough for now. We wouldn't want any messes, would we?"

I could hear soft moaning coming from my slave, and I could see her rib cage moving as her breathing deepened a little more. The whip was flying over her entire back, and I could hear each strike clearly. The Mistress was using considerable force, and I could see the effort in her sharply-defined muscles, and the glow of sweat on her body.

After another pass from shoulders to thighs, the Mistress stepped back and spun the frame so that the slave was once again facing her, and in reverse profile to me. She paused for a moment to look closely at the slave's face, and seeing only calmness there, she stepped back into the proper range, and raised the whip.

The first few strikes were quite gentle, since this part of her skin had not yet felt the whip. She swung forehand-backhand combinations from side to side across both breasts, making then wobble a little, then redden as the blood flowed to their outer surfaces. The strikes moved from her breasts down across her rib cage and onto her abdomen, then across her mound as the whipping descended to her thighs. The next pass was firmer, moving upward from her thighs, pausing for a moment on her mound. I saw the slave's hips move outward a little, pushing her pussy toward the whip, bringing her mound into prominence and making it a better target.

The relentless whip continued its upward march, and pushed her breasts back and forth with the firmness of its blows upon them. I heard the slave moan at the feeling, and her back arched, now moving her breasts into prominence for the whip, and absorbing the feeling of the strikes to their sides, and even on their under curves. When her back was arched to its fullest, the Mistress changed the angle of her blows, swinging from low to high, whipping only the undersides of her breasts for a moment. The slave reacted strongly to this attack on the tenderest part of her breasts, letting out a small yell for the first time. I could see her nipples standing out stiffly from the globes, reacting to the stimulation, and seeking their own attention.

The whip continued to move in its low to high pattern, but the strikes moved down across her front, once again reaching her mound, and I watched as she arched her pelvis once more, the target standing out in relief to her hip bones. The Mistress adjusted her aim, and the whip was now striking only between her legs, coming up from the level of the floor to impact directly on her pussy. The first strike brought forth a scream in response, then another as the second one hit. The whipping continued, relentless, but the blows started sounding like wet slaps as the strands became wet with the slave's copious juices. As each strike landed, she yelped with the impact, but her yells were interspersed with loud moans, and then whimpering. I was fairly certain she was starting to plead for release, but I had no control over how the Mistress intended to give it to her, or if that was even in the plan.