#btbday2

“No—please, Madame—please—I’m sorry! Forgive me, please!”

The snake girl’s screams tore through the long corridors of the mansion, sharp and desperate, like the cries of an animal being led to slaughter. Any servants who heard them paid no mind to the noise, continuing their duties as though nothing were happening. Outside, the sun sank behind the clouds. Night came early today.

Fidi sobbed helplessly. The person carrying her over their shoulder held her firmly by the waist, unmoved by her thrashing as they hauled her toward the site of her punishment.

I didn’t do anything wrong, she thought, biting down on her tongue to keep from crying louder. It was just a small kiss.

Just a small kiss.

During the Christmas party, she had slipped away with Neli—away from the crowd, away from their owners—into the small courtyard. Alone, beneath strings of colored artificial lights and the cool evening air, they had talked and laughed freely, forgetting, if only for a moment, the weight of their own chains.

Fidi had let herself drift with the moment. Time slipped away, overwhelmed by the scent of the flowers, by Neli’s scent, the bright lights, the warmth of the other girl’s body… And then, above her head, the mistletoe, like fate itself sealing the moment. She rose onto her toes and pressed a soft kiss to the rabbit girl’s lips.

Just a small kiss.

But fortune never lingers for girls like her—for a chimera.

Madame Lavenza saw them and immediately raised hell.

“Ugh. How repulsive.”

What followed were shouts and chaos, a hand with long manicured nails closing around Fidi’s thin wrist and yanking her away before she could even speak.

“I knew it was a mistake to let my pretty little doll associate with… a whore”

“Please, Madame!”

But the snake girl’s pleas went unheard. She was shoved into the car and taken back to the mansion.

“Disgusting,” the woman continued, each word spat through painted red lips. “You need to be cleaned. You need to be taught a lesson.”

And so a servant hoisted Fidi up and carried her in the direction her owner indicated, ignoring the frantic apologies and broken pleas spilling from the trembling chimera in their arms.

They stopped at a small bathroom on the first floor—once used by servants, now nothing more than a storage room for cleaning supplies. At the back stood a black porcelain bathtub. Fidi was dropped into it without ceremony.

“Ma’am… please, forgive me!”

Madame Lavenza answered only with a stare, cold and unyielding as ice.

Rough hands seized Fidi’s wrists, forced them above her head, and taped them to the bathtub faucet. Her legs were bound next, immobilized just as tightly. She was trapped.

Moments later, three maids entered, each carrying a bag of ice. They dumped the contents into the tub, the cubes clattering against Fidi’s skin as the tub filled.

“I do this because I care about you, Little Snake,” Madame Lavenza said softly, stroking Fidi’s cheek and wiping away her tears with her thumb. “I don’t want you picking up bad habits.”

Indignation burned in Fidi’s chest, hot and painful, but it was quickly swallowed by the cold. Her body began to shake violently, muscles spasming against the restraints.

Before she could protest again, a cloth was shoved into her mouth. Tape followed, wrapped around her head again and again, sealing her lips shut. Those impure lips.

“I hope a few hours in here help you reflect on your bad behavior,” Madame Lavenza said calmly as she turned on the faucet.

A heavy stream of icy water poured down over Fidi’s head, chilled even further by the ice. The water level rose around her restrained body until only her face remained above the surface.

Like a mermaid trapped beneath a frozen pond.

The cold was immediate and merciless. Within seconds, it felt as though thousands of needles were driving straight through her skin and into her bones. Her chest tightened, squeezed by a cage of frost. Her teeth would have been chattering uncontrollably if not for the gag. Even her head began to throb, pulsing painfully, like a second heart beating inside her skull.

She couldn’t move, not just because of the restraints, but because her body had already gone completely numb.

Madame Lavenza and her servants left her there, alone in the small, dark room.

Fidi screamed in pure terror behind the gag. She would have given anything to be locked inside the wooden box in the corner of Madame Lavenza’s office instead of here. The cold gnawed at her relentlessly. She could almost feel her organs beginning to freeze, growing heavy, dragging her deeper into the water. Though she could still breathe through her nose, each breath became harder than the last. Her lungs resisted expanding, stiff and aching.

She felt warm water slide down her cheeks.

She was crying again.

And this time, she couldn’t stop.

Taglist: @scoundrelwithboba @morning-star-whump @lancedoncrimsonwings @3-2-whump @whumped-by-glitter

@string-of-broken-hearts @alyscat @oddsconvert @what-if-i-just-did @bacillusinfection

@writinglittlepains @washing---machine @enasolos @inhurtandincomfort @cepheusgalaxy

Lapis lazuli, no doubt.

But aside from Jas and her escort, the room was completely deserted.

That didn't stop the two soldiers holding her from taking her across the vast room to throw her at the foot of the empty throne, as if presenting her before an unseen ruler. From what little Jas knew about Azura Lazuli, that much could be true.

The stone floor was cold under Jas's skin as she pushed herself up off the floor, kneeling, but not in a submissive sort of way. She would do anything but submit to the woman who thought she could just waltz in and steal….

Steal….

A sudden wave of dizziness washed over her. Before she knew what was happening, her body was already falling back to the floor.

But Jas did not follow it.

Instead, the whole world blurred, a woman fading into existence out of thin air, yanking Jas to her feet by the collar. Her long blonde hair flowed freely in an imaginary breeze, her midnight blue dress appearing as if studded with stars, Azura Lazuli looked down at Jas and smirked.

"What a lovely present," she said, eyes darting over Jas' body as one would a valuable horse. "How is it that your hair is that shade of red?"

Jas glared at her before realizing that the gag, while on her physical body, was no longer on her dream-self. Her hands, however, were still bound. "It's called chemistry, bitch," she spat, pulling away.

But Azura's grip was stronger than iron. "Chemistry…" she said, the corners of her lips turning upward as if she found the word itself amusing. "Does that explain your skin, too? Or your… unusual taste in clothing?"

She wasn't wrong. Jas still wore the jeans, sneakers, and green flannel that she had the day she'd arrived here. In this medieval society, the pants alone would have attracted scandal. As for her hair, it was dyed her favorite color. Her skin was just genetics, vitiligo that she'd inherited from her parents.

"The clothes are comfy. My skin is genetics."

The dreamshaper giggled at her answer. "Learning your place already, I see."

"Go fuck yourself."

"Such exotic slang," Azura continued, gesturing to the soldiers behind Jas. "Take her to her new room. The midwinter festival is almost upon us, and I want her properly prepared before then."

"Right away, my lady."

They… they could hear her? From the physical world?

Azura smiled sweetly at the look on Jas's face. "Goldeneye doesn't know everything, my little red gem. But don't worry, I'll show you everything he missed." She sighed, cocking her head. "In the meantime, sleep well. You will need it."

With those words, she playfully shoved Jas backward.

Cursing, unable to catch herself with her bound wrists, Jas flailed as she fell.

And fell.

And fell.

So she doesn't do anything, smiling as one guest after another comes to greet Mistress. As is expected of her, she curtsies to every one, a little wobbly from Mistress' gift still buzzing inside her and the string of lights wound so tightly around her limbs and chest. Mistress had added that part of the outfit herself, after Maid was finished making Princess look pretty for the night. It was a lot like the ropes that Mistress used to bind around her, but stiffer and poking in odd places with the steadily burning bulbs.

However, she did glow under the praises each of Mistress' friends bestowed her, complimenting her appearance and poise.

"Oh, what an absolutely adorable little Christmas tree you have here." one woman coos, her hands cupping Princess' face as the pet beams up at her. "I love this detail of the tinsel in her hair. Why don't you do a little spin for us, dear?"

Looking to Mistress for permission, she does so once her owner nods. It's not as graceful as it normally would be and she gets strangely dizzy as the toy inside her is squeezed… oh, she's cumming again.

Without thinking, she takes hold of her Mistress arm until it passes, trembling as it does. When she opens her eyes again, her smile comes easy, even as fear sparks in her chest at how they… stare at her.

"My, my, what a lovely little display." the lady from before praises her. "You always have the best trained pets, Dr Royce. We must exchange information sometime."

Princess straightens and leans into Mistress' hand as it smooths down her back. When she looks up to see her Mistress approving expression, she melts.

"I would love to, Coleen. Just name a date in the new year and we'll set something up."

As they continue to chat, Princess notices… the looks. The comments.

Several of the guests keep looking at her as if she doesn't see their lingering gaze. She'd thought at first it was because of the pretty ornament hanging from her silver collar. Then she sees their eyes darting between her barely covered breasts it lies between with something like… greed? And the strange whispers, most of them like "I'd like to leave a present under that tree." and "Think she'll unwrap her present for us after dinner?"

It makes her scared. Most of the looks are from the men, but women are looking, too. And that's… she doesn't like that.

But with Mistress' hand rubbing her back, she feels better. They won't hurt her with Mistress here. She's safe with her Mistress.

Bound to Her taglist:

Kanako spent the first three months after she was given to Miach waiting for the other shoe to drop. In those three months she was given everything she needed to live comfortably in her new room, but she was largely ignored. She knew that wouldn't last, she just didn't know when it would fade.

To Kanako's surprise, her room had a window. The thing was always locked, but she could have easily broken it and fled if she had put any real effort in. And she had considered it. She didn't want to lose access to that window, though. She had been barred from the outdoors– from even seeing it– for so long. She watched the entirety of summer pass from that window. And then Miach paid her a visit.

The night before the house had been loud and chaotic, and Kanako assumed it had been a party. She hadn't been bothered, and she had been content to stay quiet and out of the way. From how late the commotion had gone on into the night, she had assumed she would be the only one awake for most of the following day. The sun was barely up when Miach proved her wrong.

The young woman looked half-asleep and grouchy, but there she was. That second shoe had finally hit the ground, and Kanako wondered how quickly she would lose the nice meals and comfy bed she had been given. Because, even if she had made no attempts to escape, she had no plans to play nice with Miach. She wasn't going to be a replacement for that Shu Fang person Miach had told her about on the drive from the cabin, and she definitely wasn't going to be Miach's dog.

Despite the sleep crusting her eyes, Miach smiled at her. It seemed genuine enough, but Kanako remained guarded. She offered no greeting and returned no pleasantries.

"I see, you're still a little nervous, aren't you? That's understandable," Miach laughed softly. It was such a human sound, coming from someone that Kanako had no doubts was hardly worthy of being called a person.

Kanako offered Miach no answer. She watched her quietly with a thin frown.

Miach's smile stayed in place as she pushed the door shut with her heel and strolled past Kanako. Miach sat down on the bed and patted the comforter beside herself. "Come here, Kanako."

There it was. That tone. That command. Miach was talking to her like a dog. Kanako had been waiting for that. She had listened to each and every conversation Miach and her father had had at the cabin and on the drive home. Of course they wouldn't view her like a human. Kanako wouldn't play that game. She crossed her arms and stared Miach down.

Finally, that sweet smile fell from Miach's lips. Rage didn't replace it. Not yet. Instead, she looked at Kanako with a disapproving frown. "Really? Oh, there's no need to be stubborn. I haven't been coming to see you, but I know you've been well taken care of. Come over here, Kanako."

She didn't budge. And Kanako still wouldn't say anything. She had seen the worst that humanity had to offer, and she had no intentions to give into one bratty woman's demands. Nothing Miach did would be more cruel than the things Kanako had already seen or experienced. At the same time, Kanako knew better than to actually hurt Miach. Anything she physically did to the other woman would probably be returned tenfold. Until Miach tried to hurt her, she would do nothing.

It took exactly three more minutes of silence for Miach's patience to evaporate.

Kanako could see it the moment Miach snapped. Even before her lips twisted into a sour scowl the annoyance in her eyes turned venomous.

"Fine! If you won't come over here when I tell you to, I'll make you!" Miach got to her feet and stormed over.

Miach was a few inches shorter than Kanako, but she was stronger. Maybe she worked out, maybe she played sports. Kanako wasn't sure, but she felt it the moment Miach grabbed at her hair. The woman's arms were strong. Her hands were, too. Kanako could no longer blame it on sickness like she had at the cabin. Now it was a sheer difference in physical capacity.

There wasn't much that Kanako could do to stop Miach from wrenching her upper body down. She genuinely feared that Miach might accidentally snap her neck if she wasn't careful, so she didn't plant her feet. She shambled along beside Miach, and when they got to the bed she rolled as Miach forced her over onto her back.

That was the moment Kanako had needed. Miach's fingers left her hair as the woman moved to straddle her. Kanako didn't wait. She drew her knees up and forced them forward into Miach's groin.

Sure, a blow between the legs wasn't as bad for someone without balls, but that didn't mean it was an easy thing to take. Miach gave a choked out yelp the moment the impact landed, and for a moment her weight collapsed on top of Kanako.

She should have stopped there. She should have counted her victory and accepted that if would cost her dearly. Kanako was going to make sure Miach never forgot this lesson, though. While the woman was still hunched over on top of her Kanako would lean forward and dig teeth into Miach's shoulder. She bit until she felt flesh give, and then she bit just a little harder.

Miach howled in pain, and as soon as Kanako released her Miach would sit up enough to slam an elbow into her face.

There was little Kanako could do from there. She couldn't fight off Miach's rage. She could only take it.

That had been the start of Kanako's "training." As a punishment for the bite, Miach had put an actual muzzle on her. It was meant for dogs, but when the straps were pulled tightly enough it still stayed put on Kanako's face. The ever-constant pressure around her skull left her dizzy and nauseous, but she wore that stupid thing with pride.

Kanako's outburst hadn't just earned her pain, though. Miach didn't physically force her to do anything after that. She starved her, she plyed her with praise and treats, she snuck her booze, she berated her, but Miach never dared to put hands on Kanako after that. And Kanako held strong.

It wasn't easy to go back to being hungry, but she distracted herself. When she was given treats and abundant food to sweeten her mood she would ignore it. She learned quickly to take anything consumable that Miach gave her slowly, and after the first time she got drunk enough to soften towards Miach's commands she learned to tell when she was getting buzzed from something. The harsh words were the least effective. Kanako could ignore them, or she could even turn them back on Miach. Either way, the woman would grow infuriated with her.

Kanako's will didn't waver. The end of summer passed into fall, and that turned to winter without her giving in. If things had stayed that way, she would have kept strong for months to come. Miach had learned by then, though. She had learned that Kanako wouldn't give.

Kanako didn't know where they were going or what was happening. Well before the sun rose, Miach directed a man into the room to drag Kanako out of bed. The man wore a uniform like the one Miach's father had, but it didn't have as many shiny decorations or tassels. He was probably some poor footsoldier who had to do whatever his boss' kid asked. Kanako didn't exactly feel bad for him, though, as he pulled her out of bed and to her feet.

Her head swam from the straps of the muzzle. It had been making it harder and harder to think. She only gave a short, disgruntled groan as she was pushed to shuffle towards the door.

Miach walked in front of her. Kanako felt a short burst of pride when she saw the way the woman gazed warily over her shoulder every so often. Once, Kanako even surged forward a step to make her jump. She wouldn't be doing that again, though. It earned her a chokehold from the officer behind her. Her ears were pounding by the time the man released her, and she swayed for the first few steps she took.

In the driveway of the house was a fancy little car. It was obnoxiously yellow, and the back door was held open. Miach stopped just short of the door, and before Kanako could try to puzzle out what was happening the man had her in a choke hold again.

"Hold your hands out, Kanako. We can do this the easy way, or the hard way," Miach was smiling at her. The words she spoke thrummed in and out of volume as Kanako's hearing began to dull out and ring.

Kanako didn't move. Her head felt like it was going to split under the pressure of the muzzle, but she wouldn't cave. No, Miach had to work for it.

In the end, Kanako's will lasted longer than her body did. Her vision danced with spots and then faded. Her thoughts went a few moments later. She wasn't out for long. She hadn't expected to be. Her body must have been limp long enough for Miach to bind her wrists, though. Cuffs linked them together, and she was being pushed back onto the backseat of the car.

Kanako was alert, but her body was too weak to fight. She could only glare at Miach and the man as they cuffed her ankles and then linked the chains between her wrists and ankles together. They gave her enough slack to sit up, but she wouldn't be able to stand. She slumped forward to rest her head against the back of the driver's seat. It felt like her temples were going to split as her heart pounded. She wanted that muzzle off more than she ever had before.

Her vision faded in and out, and her hearing did too. She had just enough energy to muster a whispered, "Fuck you..." before the door was closed.

Kanako didn't try to figure out where they were going. She was dizzy. She was nauseous. The feeling of suffocating was slowly fading, but that fucking muzzle made it linger. She kept her forehead against the back of Miach's seat, and eventually she just closed her eyes.

It was a long drive. Near the end, it felt like a drive with a lot of curves and turns. Kanako told herself to drop it and stop thinking, but she couldn't. She wanted to know where they were going. What was happening. She was half-convinced they were going back to that cabin by the time the car stopped and she heard Miach turn it off.

Kanako didn't sit up until Miach pulled her up by the back of the muzzle. She didn't exactly help Miach sit her up, but she didn't fight it. Not that time. When her eyes adjusted to the sharp, white glare beyond the open door she realized her suspicion had been right. They were back at the cabin where she had been introduced to Miach.

"I thought a change of scenery might make you feel a little more... cooperative," Miach hummed. She uncuffed Kanako's wrists and ankles, and then she took the muzzle off. That stupid thing had only come off when Miach gave Kanako food before, and it had only been off for a minute or two before or after meals. They were in the car. There was no food in sight. The thing was actually off.

Kanako worked her jaw a few times to ease the tension behind her temples before she looked up at Miach. She wouldn't thank her. She wouldn't obey her. Having the muzzle off was nice, but it wouldn't be the thing that broke Kanako. Not after everything.

Miach didn't give Kanako a chance to obey anything, though. She tugged her out of the car by the sleeve and then grabbed her bicep. She kept a firm grip there as she marched Kanako to the cabin.

Thick snow blanketed everything except the road. It looked like that had been shoveled, if the massive snow drifts to either side of it were any indication. The home where Kanako had been staying hadn't seen a single speck of snow since winter began. It felt like they were in a different country entirely, even if the drive between the places was only a few hours.

Miach had prepared herself for the weather. She had on a thick coat and gloves. Kanako had nothing warm on. A thin t-shirt and a pair of shorts. The cold bit through the clothes, and her feet and legs burned as they sank into the snow with each step.

Miach didn't lead her into the cabin, though. She led Kanako around it. Trees were cleared away from the front and back of the cabin, but only a few meters from the cabin on all sides there was a thick forest of pines and evergreens. Beneath one sizeable one there was an old dog house, and at first Miach led Kanako there. That wasn't where they stopped, though. They stopped a few trees over, and Kanako suddenly understood very well why they were there.

A thick chain wrapped around the base of one tree, and at the end was a heavy leather collar. The collar wouldn't have enough slack for Kanako to reach the dog house. She wouldn't even be able to reach the cover offered by the denser growth of trees just past the one with the chain.

"I'll break you down somehow, Kanako," Miach hummed.

That was the first time Kanako actively tried to escape. She thrashed and pulled, and she got her arm free. She lurched away from Miach and made a break for the trees. The struggle earned her a shout, but she didn't stop to look back. If she wanted a chance at all, she had to put all of her focus into running.

Kanako ducked and stepped around branches, and she got far enough into the trees that the snow thinned out. She had never intended to escape, because she had nowhere to go. If she got away from Miach, she would just be found again. It was awfully hard to think about that when she was faced with a night collared to a tree in the snow, though.

Already, her feet were going numb. Her ears and her nose were burning. She ignored the sharp, hot sting of thorns and branches cutting her skin.

Kanako's lungs were the thing that gave out first. She couldn't get enough breath to ease the pounding, disorienting headache that she had felt before. The dizziness made her legs heavy and clumsy, and one wrong step sent her sprawling over a branch instead of hopping over it.

Miach was on her immediately. Kanako tried to thrash and fight, but her body wouldn't move the way she told it to. She was exhausted.

Kanako couldn't stop herself from being hauled back through the trees and to the clearing behind the cabin, and she couldn't stop herself from being dragged to the one tree she had tried to escape.

Miach's breath was loud and hot against Kanako's neck. She couldn't do anything but shiver, though, as she was forced to her knees and the collar was wrapped around her throat. It was so tight that each breath left her windpipe pressing at the leather.

"There... now, I was going to check on you this evening to make sure you didn't freeze, but I'm not so sure about that anymore," Miach puffed out hotly. She pulled a heavy padlock from her coat's pocket and latched it into the collar so Kanako couldn't get it undone.

Then, to Kanako's humiliation and horror, Miach began to pull her shorts and panties off.

"Doggies don't get clothes. You'll need to earn these back by being a good girl for me," Miach didn't pull the shirt off. Instead, she took a knife from her pocket and cut it away. Kanako didn't fight anymore. She had used all the energy she could to fight, and already her body was screaming to save it for warmth. Her skin burned, and her muscles shivered.