to pass training. Now, don’t get me wrong. Even the lower level group knows better than to harm Master’s slaves. Anyone who harms one of us has to answer to Master, and Master has a reputation for being very harsh.
“Ok, I am finished with your bath. You can stay in here and relax in the soothing water for a little while longer or you can get out. If you want to do your hair, you can step in the shower and do it. There’s shampoo and conditioner in there for your use.”
“Thanks Keera, I will probably do that. It is starting to get tangled and frizzed, so it definitely does need a good shampooing.”
Neenah got out of the tub and stepped into the shower and washed her hair, making sure that all of the tangles had been taken care of before she turned off the water and stepped out. Keera was standing there waiting for her, with a fresh towel in her hand.
“We have got the necessary tools for you to self-style your hair, or you can call for the style machine that will set your hair in the style of your choosing and it will stay set for a few days.”
“You know, I think I will do it myself. Taking care of my hair was one thing that I did do myself, though I generally had to wash it in a basin because we did not have the old fashioned plumbing and bathing units.”
Neenah spent quite some time on fixing her hair, trying to make the curls behave and be styled so that they looked nice and would appeal to Master. When she was finished, she joined Keera, who was watching a video on the big screen, in the living room.
“What are you watching?” Neenah asked.
“Oh, basically I am just flipping the channels. Watching nothing but porn tends to get old after a while.”
“Why does Master not allow us to watch other things?”
“I guess he wants us to keep our minds on what we are here to do. Though, I cannot see why watching a real movie or television show would cause us to lose sight of what we do here.”
Neenah and Keera spent the rest of the day in easy companionship and then went to bed when the lights automatically shut down, signaling that it was time to go to sleep.
Chapter Six
Neenah awoke the next morning and checked her control panel and was told that Master was still working on Nylia’s training, so Neenah would have another free day. She hoped that the free day would apply to Keera as well, for she did not see how she would pass the time without someone to talk to without getting extremely bored.
She walked out into the living area and heard noise in the kitchen, so she headed that way, figuring that Keera would be in there making breakfast. Sure enough, when she walked through the door, she saw Keera putting the breakfast food on two plates.
“Good morning Neenah. I have already made breakfast. Here is your plate. Have a seat.”
Neenah sat down and began to eat her breakfast. “This is delicious Keera. Did you cook this yourself or did you order it from the food service?”
“I cooked it myself. Thank you for the compliment.”
“I have no idea how you do that. I had never seen an old fashioned stove until coming here. The palace was always stocked with the most up to date, hi tech contraptions. I would love to learn how to cook. Is it difficult?”
“Well, it can be. There are easy dishes that you can make, but when you get into making meals with more than one dish, it can get complicated. There is a section on your lap top that allows you to send requests to Master. You can ask him if he will allow the librarian to send you articles on cooking or videos with lessons. He would possibly even unlock the cooking channel on the big screen in order for you to learn. Contacting him through our lap tops is about the only way that we have to communicate with him except for those rare times when he allows us to talk freely in his presence.”
Neenah and Keera finished up with breakfast and moved into the living area. As they settled on the couch, Neenah decided to see if she could find
C. J. Cherryh
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Christopher George
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