by Willow, Jo
There were already several others present, most of them men, some were women. Being one who dominated as opposed to being on the receiving end, I never thought much about Dominatrix’s. As a rule I never sought personal relationships with bossy women. I found them engaging in the workforce, but I didn’t like my methods challenged or questioned outside of work. That excluded them as pleasurable companions. Call it what you want, we all have “types” that we lean towards.
I sat in the second row on the end and faced forward. There was a thick padded mat on the floor in front of the small stage, a waist high padded bench on the stage, and several implements laid out on a table near the bench. I didn’t know if this would be standard equipment for all of the classes, but if not, then they would be cramming an awful lot into the first class.
Promptly at eight o’clock, all of the chairs were full except two. The one next to me, and the one dead center in front of the mat. Idle chit-chat was at a minimum so when the instructor and what I assumed was his Sub entered, the room fell instantly quiet.
The instructor was a rather large man, quite muscular and about my height. He wore leather trousers and a leather vest, his torso bare of clothing or tattoos. His Sub was quite small in comparison. Her long brown hair was tied back by a leather strip and fell in waves to her waist. Her eyes were big and dark. She wore no expression and I found that odd. She stood in a long gauzy white shirt that fell to her mid thighs and belted at the waist. It appeared that she wore nothing beneath it. Her feet were bare.
Upon entering, she knelt next to her Master, her hands palm down on her thighs, her eyes turned toward the mat. Everyone present recognized the pose as the expected Sub position. She awaited her Master’s command. I’d had Subs in the past that did this naturally and it set the mood for the scene that followed, whatever that scene might be. I remembered Ayla in that pose the first time we were alone and that memory made me uncomfortable now. I would contemplate it later because our instructor began the class.
“Welcome. Tonight is the beginning of a journey you’ll be taking that will lead you to becoming better Dom’s. My name is Master Daniel, and this is my Sub, Elise. We’ve been together five years and we trust each other implicitly. If you take nothing else from this class, take that and put it to good use. You will never have a working relationship with a Submissive that doesn’t trust you. That trust comes with responsibilities. He or she will trust you to protect them and see to their well being and satisfaction. They will trust you not to abuse your power over them or hurt them unnecessarily. If you break that trust in any way, you are nothing more than a common thug that abuses women and you have no place here. Is that clear?”
The group as one voice said, “Yes Master Daniel”. It felt like a fifth grade classroom.
“The first thing you will be taught is how to interact with your Sub...”
And so it went for the next thirty minutes. He explained the approach and tone of voice used to reward and punish, as well as physical clues the Sub might give if stressed or in need of something, be it attention or a bathroom break. He stressed the importance of safe words that were easy to remember and he recommended letting the Sub choose them. I happened to agree so I wrote nothing down. Everyone else was taking copious notes. This was not brain surgery and I found their diligence almost humorous.
After the interaction phase, he went around the room and asked us to stand and give our first name and the name of our Sub. I wasn’t sure why our Subs had to be mentioned and it stumped me. But I was adaptable and so when it came to my turn, I stood.
“My name is Master Pierce and my wife’s name is Ayla.”
Master Daniel smiled and instead of moving on, he focused on me for a moment.
“You married your Sub? How unusual.”
I found myself shaking my head.
“No, I married my wife. My wife kneels to no one.”
He crossed his arms and cocked his head.
“Then what is your Sub’s name?”
“I find no need for a Sub. My wife takes care of my needs in every way and is open to any suggestion I make.”
“So your wife does what you tell her? That makes her a Sub by definition.”
“My wife does what’s reasonable and tells me if she disagrees or finds something objectionable. I take her suggestions and reasoning on board. That makes her a wife.”
I watched his nostrils flare and knew he was losing patience. I didn’t give a fig about him or his lack of patience. Ayla was not a Sub and I would not be calling her one.
“Pierce, why are you here?”
It did not escape my notice that he’d dropped the “Master” from my name. I don’t think I gave a fig about that either.
“I find Costa Rica and zip-lining not to my liking, and a friend of mine thought that I needed toughening up when it came to Domination. She gave me this class as a gift.”
He nodded his head once as if indicating that we were finally getting somewhere, before he spoke.
“Your friend is correct. Is this friend male or female?”
“Female.”
“If she knows about your bedroom preferences, perhaps she could be coaxed into being your Sub.”
“That would be wrong on so many levels, you have no idea.”
I said the words through laughter but everyone was looking at me as if I were addled. This encounter was not going in my favor and the instructor had reached his limit.
“Pierce, could you come up here please?”
I didn’t know what he could possibly be needing me for, but I complied like a good student. He motioned to a spot in front of the table full of implements and I took a standing position there. Master Daniel turned back to the class.
“The rest of the class will be spent learning the various ways to spank your Sub using various tools of the trade, as I like to call them. Then I’ll demonstrate proper after care.”
He placed his hand on his Sub’s head and she looked up at him.
“Elise, assume the position on the bench.”
The first thing I noticed was that he didn’t say, “Please”. I know what you’re thinking, but even as a Dom I find that good manners go a long way. I was raised to say, “Please” and “Thank-you”, and I found both phrases widely popular with everyone, Subs included.
Elise gracefully draped herself over the bench, her bare bottom exposed to everyone. While her bottom was quite nice, I saw no reason for it to be paraded naked to a room full of strangers. I found it uncouth and opened my mouth to say exactly that, when Master Daniel interrupted my train of thought.
“Master Pierce, why don’t you demonstrate the basic open palm spanking technique? If you truly are a Dom, and I have no reason to believe that isn’t true...yet, then you are undoubtedly familiar with this basic form of punishment. Don’t worry, she enjoys a good spanking. Don’t you Elise? You may speak.”
A small and throaty voice said, “Yes Master Daniel”. Then all eyes were on me.
I feel at this point you should know that I’ve engaged in my share of spanking women. I’ve never spanked one that objected to that form of punishment or play, and I never would. Just like I would never dole out undeserved punishment. Master Daniel didn’t say we were in scene or acting in a playful manner. He specifically said that this was a “basic form of punishment”. In my view, Elise had done nothing to be punished for.
“I have no desire to spank Elise.”
Master Daniel looked at me as if I’d just urinated on his leg.
“Excuse me? Are you or are you not, a Dom?”
“I am and I’ve had several satisfied Subs to my credit.”
“Have you never spanked one?”
“When it’s understood that it’s a deserved punishment, yes.”
“Then why won’t you demonstrate a simple technique? I could teach a five year old how to spank a Sub.”
The group tittered at that, but I held firm.
“Elise has done nothing to deserve a spanking
and I am not in the habit of punishing someone undeserving of it. I don’t even know Elise. She seems like a perfectly lovely Sub to me.”
Elise turned her head in my direction and smiled. I smiled in return. Master Daniel was not amused.
“Do NOT address my Sub. She is not to smile at, or respond to, anyone but me! For that, she has earned the punishment you seem reluctant to give her.”
He was obviously insulted and angry and I felt bad for placing Elise in that position. Normally, I would not interfere with a Dom/Sub relationship, but in this case, I felt that Master Daniel was angry at me, not Elise. I could not in good conscience stand by and watch her incur physical pain because of my transgression.
He was turning to address the audience when I interrupted.
“I’m sorry Master Daniel for my faux pas. You are well within your rights to be angry with my unsolicited interaction with your Sub. But if I may interject something, Dom to Dom, perhaps I am the one deserving of the punishment instead of Elise.”
He took on a deep shade of red and clenched his hands at his side. He was well aware that the class was now looking at him, awaiting his response. He had opened the class with a speech about the importance of fostering trust in one’s Sub, and this was a clear breach of that philosophy. She trusted him to handle this situation with me, man to man, and yet he was clearly planning to inflict pain upon her simply because he could and he was frustrated. Again, in my opinion, the action was uncalled for and cruel.
He turned his attention to me and narrowed his eyes.
“What do you suggest Pierce?”
I do not know what possessed me to speak the words that fell from my mouth.
“I’ll take the spanking in her place.”
A chameleon could not have changed color faster. He went white as a sheet of notebook paper. And clenched his jaw as he hissed out, “I do NOT spank men”!
Clearly we were at an impasse. A woman in the audience raised her hand, and his head swung in her direction.
“Yes?”
She stood, her back straight, her blonde hair pulled into a severe ponytail. She was dressed in latex from head to foot and made an imposing figure. She smiled at Master Daniel and her smile changed to something almost predatory when she turned to me.
“My name is Mistress Ruby and I DO spank men.”
Master Daniel grinned in a way that told me that my day had just gone from absurd to unsalvageable. He held out his hand to her and as she maneuvered towards us, weaving through the other students, he turned to Elise.
“Elise, kneel.”
She stood immediately, murmured, “Yes Master”, and knelt at his side in her previous position. Then he turned to me.
“Master Pierce, you admitted wrongdoing and implied that you would accept the punishment on Elise’s behalf. Are you ready to make good on that offer?”
I could have pointed out that this whole thing was ridiculous. I could actually have made the argument that I had never MET this Mistress Ruby, and therefore I had no argument with her whatsoever. She had no business placing her hand or anything else upon my person. But for the sake of getting past this and out of here without further adieu, I said neither of those things.
Instead, I stood in front of the bench that was too low to allow me to bend over it easily, even if I knelt. I waited while Mistress Ruby joined us at the front of the class.
She shook the hand of the instructor and then she offered her hand to me. I shook it reluctantly and waited again. She turned to the class.
“The bench is too low for someone of Master Pierce’s height. In this case, I would normally suspend him with cuffs and carabiners from the ceiling, or restrain him to a St. Andrew’s cross. Since neither of those options are available to me, I will have him lean over and place his hands upon the bench.”
She was clever, I’ll give her that. I was beginning to bend over when she stopped me.
“Master Pierce, drop your trousers.”
There were two things wrong with that statement. First, again, the request lacked the word, “Please”. Second, she was dwelling in Crazy Town if she believed for one second that I would bare my body to this crowd.
I used my height to my advantage and towered over her.
“No. I will most certainly NOT be dropping my trousers.”
She picked up a riding crop and flicked it viciously against my bare arm, leaving a welt. I took the crop from her and broke it in half.
“Listen to me you evil bitch, you may think yourself a Dominatrix, but NO ONE dominates me be it with whip, crop, or cane. Are we clear on this?”
I rarely lost my temper and I never lost my cool. I could be seething in anger and control my demeanor with ease. Something about a riding crop and a welt inflicted by a stranger made me see things in a different light.
She and I were staring each other down, waiting for the other to admit defeat, when Master Daniel cleared his throat.
“I see we have a problem here. Two dominant personalities, one willing to assist in a punishment, and the other refusing the crop.”
I swung around and leaned towards him, forcing him to take a step back.
“The only person who perceived me as deserving of punishment, is you. She...”
I gestured over my shoulder, “...is a sadist who wants nothing more than to inflict pain on someone and she doesn’t care who.”
Master Daniel cocked his head and placed his index finger on his chin as if in thought. I had serious doubts that he’d ever had an original thought in his life.
“Perhaps you’re right and perhaps you’re wrong. I’ve had no prior dealings with Mistress Ruby and am not as quick to judge as you are. What do you propose as a solution to our dilemma?”
This was no dilemma. This was a farce. The welt on my arm was beginning to throb and my theories regarding this particular instructor and the people in this class were beginning to take flight.
I turned to the class. They were sitting on the edge of their seats like vultures waiting for an easy meal. I for one had learned nothing thus far, and saw no sense in taking this encounter any further. I had arrived for the class and had the wristband to prove it. My obligation to Melody had been fulfilled.
While he stood there waiting for my answer, I began unrolling my sleeves and buttoning my cuffs. When that task was completed, I turned once again to Master Daniel.
“I see two possible outcomes to this situation, both are satisfactory to me.”
He clasped his hands behind his back and grinned.
“Please continue. I’m all ears.”
I shifted my weight onto one hip and crossed my arms in front of me. To everyone present, I’m sure I appeared bored. I’d been told that before when I took this position and it served me well.
“Actually, you’re all mouth, but at this point, that’s stating the obvious. There are two ways this can play out. You and I can go outside and I’ll beat the hell out of you, or I can leave now and never return. One allows you to continue teaching a class, one does not. Choose.”
There was not a sound to be heard. Not a chair creaking, not a page turning, not an inhale or exhale. Everyone waited. As for me, I would be content to leave.
We were matched in height. He might be a bit more muscular, but I could defend myself and I was fast. I watched him calculate all of the possibilities before he spoke. We both knew that losing his credibility was first and foremost on his mind. I decided that I’d stated my position plainly and had nothing more to say. Let the bastard sweat.
He widened his stance and crossed his arms across his chest, almost a mirrored image of myself. I told you. Not an original thought, even in passing.
“Pierce, you are no Master on any level. I’m not completely sure that you’re not a mole sent in from a local news station or tabloid publication. For the sake of protecting the anonymity of those present and diminishing the sensationalism of anything you may choose to publish, I demand that you leave and never return. Your costs will not
be refunded.”
Now was as good a time as any to get the hell out. I realized that to many people present, the nonrefundable tuition would have been a hardship. If that was the worst he could do to me, the whole regrettable incident took just under two hours and I was now a free man.
I left the stage and never stopped walking until I was in my car with the doors locked.
I was home within an hour and making love to my wife within two. Afterwards, I retold the entire incident while I held her in my arms and then she made love to me. Who needed to train a Submissive? Ayla was training me just fine and I was loving every minute of it.
Chapter Sixteen
I don’t know why I was amazed. Again. Melody and Ayla managed to organize the first wedding in six weeks, I can’t understand why I was surprised that they managed to do it again. If I were to hazard a guess, I imagine it had something to do with the difference in weddings and the rapidly expanding Dorothy.
It felt like she’d doubled in size in a month. The baby was due in about three weeks, but something had changed. Something in the way she carried him felt different. It wasn’t until my folks came to the city to spend a few days with us before the wedding that an explanation came into play.
My mother took one look at her, beamed and hugged her tightly. Deacon watched the two women and a look of consternation crossed his face.
“Mom? What is it?”
My mother moved her hand over Dorothy’s abdomen until it came to rest slightly under her rounded form.
“He’s dropped.”
Deacon looked thoroughly befuddled.
“Who’s dropped?”
My mother rolled her eyes before she closed them and shook her head.
“Brian. The baby. Your son. He’s dropped into position Deacon. It’ll be any time now.”
Deacon began shaking his head adamantly, his eyes growing huge. It was an interesting look and I liked it on him. I’d never seen my brother terrified before. The Lone Wolf with his tail tucked in, pissing himself over something his mother said.