that might affect Lara.”
“She’s right,” Elisabeth said. “All favors we accept from you will be personal favors. Nothing that affects pack business.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I will pay the major personal favor, each, for unlimited beverages, although right now I would like cool water.”
It took a minute, and then a straw was inserted into my mouth, and I drank slowly. “Thank you.”
“You are welcome,” said Ava. “Michaela, thank you for doing this. You should know, I have my eye on a really nice sports car.”
I laughed.
“Michaela, we’re going to ramp this up slowly,” Elisabeth said. “You know how to make us stop if it gets to be too much.”
“Yes.”
“You must not let this hurt our relationships.”
“I won’t, Elisabeth.”
“All the food you want until noon tomorrow is a medium favor each. We don’t promise to cook whatever you ask for, but we will be reasonably accommodating. The price tomorrow will be significantly higher, and we will not be telling you the time.”
“Agreed.” I sighed. “You already know it takes energy when I heal, don’t you?”
“Yes,” she said. “And we’ll stop feeding you eventually. You’ll lose the ability to heal if this drags out more than a few days, especially as the punishments ramp up. That’s why we’re not just giving you unlimited food.”
“None of the rest of us can heal without shifting,” Angel said. “Anything we might do to Lara would be cumulative unless we let her shift, which of course we wouldn’t. We think you’re going to go a long time. Aren’t you?”
“Yeah,” I said. “At least until you stop feeding me. After that, I don’t know.”
Someone caressed my face. “The pack is going to be so proud of you, Michaela.”
“Are hugs free?” I asked.
“Yes, honey,” Angel said. “Hugs are definitely free.”
* * * *
They set up a full time video feed, streaming to anyone in the pack who wanted to watch. Gia managed security and assured me only the pack could watch. It cost a favor to have it turned off for five minutes but they agreed not to film bathroom breaks. The current ransom demand was listed on the same web site.
At first, after the initial punishment, they alternated the rules. Either they did something unpleasant to me, and the level of unpleasantness increased each time, or they offered something playful. When they offered something playful, they told me they would all pay the same price if I also accepted an unpleasant punishment, and they wouldn’t always tell me what it would be.
The first time, it was a waxing. We all got waxed, and I also got ten firm swats across the bottoms of my feet. I was still blindfolded, and couldn’t see them coming. I flinched after each one, but I didn’t stop smiling.
The second time it was pedicures with bright pink nail polish, and everyone vowed to wear it for a week. There wasn’t a person in the room who would normally have worn pink, and Karen was especially unhappy about it. She delivered my punishments that time, and she wasn’t kind. I heard Elisabeth later telling her to be a good scout or leave. She stayed and was fine after that.
They kept me blindfolded for a long time. When I asked the price of having it removed, they told me it wasn’t on the table yet. Then they finally offered to remove it, they asked a major favor each. I offered a medium favor each, and they accepted but told me they reserved the right to re-blindfold me for short durations during some punishments.
“But don’t get used to it,” Elisabeth said. “We just wanted you to see what we’re going to do next.”
“Next” it turned out was Elisabeth setting onto the coffee table the belt and the chopsticks I’d been wearing. “These are pack secrets,” she said. “You will tell us what they are.”
She held up the wooden chopsticks. “Why did you ask us to remove these?”
I smiled sweetly, and she slapped me hard enough to knock me onto my side. I
“She’s right,” Elisabeth said. “All favors we accept from you will be personal favors. Nothing that affects pack business.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I will pay the major personal favor, each, for unlimited beverages, although right now I would like cool water.”
It took a minute, and then a straw was inserted into my mouth, and I drank slowly. “Thank you.”
“You are welcome,” said Ava. “Michaela, thank you for doing this. You should know, I have my eye on a really nice sports car.”
I laughed.
“Michaela, we’re going to ramp this up slowly,” Elisabeth said. “You know how to make us stop if it gets to be too much.”
“Yes.”
“You must not let this hurt our relationships.”
“I won’t, Elisabeth.”
“All the food you want until noon tomorrow is a medium favor each. We don’t promise to cook whatever you ask for, but we will be reasonably accommodating. The price tomorrow will be significantly higher, and we will not be telling you the time.”
“Agreed.” I sighed. “You already know it takes energy when I heal, don’t you?”
“Yes,” she said. “And we’ll stop feeding you eventually. You’ll lose the ability to heal if this drags out more than a few days, especially as the punishments ramp up. That’s why we’re not just giving you unlimited food.”
“None of the rest of us can heal without shifting,” Angel said. “Anything we might do to Lara would be cumulative unless we let her shift, which of course we wouldn’t. We think you’re going to go a long time. Aren’t you?”
“Yeah,” I said. “At least until you stop feeding me. After that, I don’t know.”
Someone caressed my face. “The pack is going to be so proud of you, Michaela.”
“Are hugs free?” I asked.
“Yes, honey,” Angel said. “Hugs are definitely free.”
* * * *
They set up a full time video feed, streaming to anyone in the pack who wanted to watch. Gia managed security and assured me only the pack could watch. It cost a favor to have it turned off for five minutes but they agreed not to film bathroom breaks. The current ransom demand was listed on the same web site.
At first, after the initial punishment, they alternated the rules. Either they did something unpleasant to me, and the level of unpleasantness increased each time, or they offered something playful. When they offered something playful, they told me they would all pay the same price if I also accepted an unpleasant punishment, and they wouldn’t always tell me what it would be.
The first time, it was a waxing. We all got waxed, and I also got ten firm swats across the bottoms of my feet. I was still blindfolded, and couldn’t see them coming. I flinched after each one, but I didn’t stop smiling.
The second time it was pedicures with bright pink nail polish, and everyone vowed to wear it for a week. There wasn’t a person in the room who would normally have worn pink, and Karen was especially unhappy about it. She delivered my punishments that time, and she wasn’t kind. I heard Elisabeth later telling her to be a good scout or leave. She stayed and was fine after that.
They kept me blindfolded for a long time. When I asked the price of having it removed, they told me it wasn’t on the table yet. Then they finally offered to remove it, they asked a major favor each. I offered a medium favor each, and they accepted but told me they reserved the right to re-blindfold me for short durations during some punishments.
“But don’t get used to it,” Elisabeth said. “We just wanted you to see what we’re going to do next.”
“Next” it turned out was Elisabeth setting onto the coffee table the belt and the chopsticks I’d been wearing. “These are pack secrets,” she said. “You will tell us what they are.”
She held up the wooden chopsticks. “Why did you ask us to remove these?”
I smiled sweetly, and she slapped me hard enough to knock me onto my side. I
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