Prince Cade sat on his chair as he waited for his servant to arrive. Ava had warned him earlier that she had woken up late and may be delayed. He read over some papers as he awaited her knock.
“Your Royal Highness,” a soft voice drew his attention and he glanced up to see Scarlett standing there. She was pushing the door closed as she addressed him and he was stunned he hadn’t heard the door open in the first place.
“Sir,” Cade corrected.
“Pardon?”
“My title is Sir, remember?”
“Oh,” the woman’s cheeks blushed pink. “Apologies, Sir.”
“You’ll learn. Typically this would be a strike against you, but right now you’re still learning.” He waved his hand forward and motioned towards the space in front of him.
“A strike, Sir?”
“Yes. When you misbehave or don’t follow the directions, you will be given a strike. Your punishment will depend on how many strikes you earn in a day. During your training, you will be given more leniency and understanding. You will still be punished, but not for the same infractions.”
Scarlett just nodded and stared at Cade. He looked at her before glancing down at his papers again.
“Have you eaten?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Good,” he stacked the papers and placed them on the table. “Then we can get to your training. We will start with some protocol training. Do you know any signals or positions?”
“No, Sir.”
Cade nodded and stood from his seat. “We will work on positions first. These are the positions that you will be expected to take any time that you are at my side. It does not matter where we are. We can be by ourselves in the library or in the middle of the market. Unless you safeword or it is unsafe, you are expected to know and take these positions. Once you have those, we can work on adding in the signals.” The other woman only nodded in response. “Kneel.”
Scarlett hesitated at his words but when he motioned to the ground she lowered her body. Her knees hit the ground and she settled on her legs. His eyes roved over her body, taking in the many mistakes in her position.
“I’m going to touch you to put you in the correct position, okay?” The woman nodded but didn’t speak. “I need verbal confirmation.”
“Yes, Sir. That’s okay.”
He reached down and pulled her up until she wasn’t resting on her legs but rather sitting upright. He pressed against her back until she stretched her spine and stopped slouching. Her hands were dangling by her side and he reached down to gently move them in front of her body, hands clasped in front of her. He lightly tapped his foot against hers until she slid her legs closer together.
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“Tilt your head down to face the ground.” The woman bent her neck and Cade took in the woman. He momentarily froze as he felt a small tug in his gut at the sight. “This is the Kneel Present position.” He watched her legs shake slightly as she held the position. Her body swayed and he reached out to still the movement. Two minutes passed until he thought to give her a break. “Lower yourself until you are sitting on your legs.” The woman slowly lowered herself, thighs shaking slightly at the movement. “Lay your hands flat on your thighs, palms up. This is the Kneel Position.” Another two minutes passed as she held the position. Her body swayed less in the position because she had more support, but he still saw a shake in her body.
“Stand up.” She moved unsteadily to her feet. He watched as she stumbled slightly once she was back on her feet. Her skin was flushed and a light sheen of sweat dotted her forehead. “Decent. When you are in Kneel Present, you are not permitted to move. Your body is not to sway or shake. We’ll work on your positions until you can hold them perfectly.”
Scarlett did not speak in response as she looked at the Prince. He pointed to her eyes and then at the ground and she moved her gaze away from his face.
“When you are standing before me, or any other nobility for that matter, you are not to make eye contact with us. You will keep your gaze on the ground unless I tell you otherwise.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Kneel Present.” Cade’s voice was rough as he spoke and he gnawed against his cheek as he watched her slowly move into position. “Wrong. Fix it.”
“I don’t know how to, Sir.” Her voice was quiet as she looked down at the ground.
He sighed before beginning to move towards her. He tapped at her body as he walked around her, indicating corrections that needed to be made. A tap to her back and she straightened her spine. A light kick to her thigh and she tucked her legs closer together. A nudge to her thighs and she drew herself further away from her legs.
“You’re going to hold this position for 8 minutes. Two minutes for every mistake.” He settled back into his chair and briefly glanced over his pages, keeping an eye on the clock and on Scarlett. The time ticked by and he watched as her thighs began to shake, her back muscles flexing as she tried to maintain her formation.
"Down," he ordered and she lowered herself until her butt was resting against her legs again. "That was three minutes. Not bad for your first time."
"Sir?" Her eyes stayed on the floor, but he could hear the tone of her voice. It was soft, curious.
"I figured you wouldn't be able to hold the full length of the time, but I wanted to see what you could do. With time you will be able to hold the position longer."
"Yes, Sir."
"Let's practice some of your other positions now. I want you to rise to your feet." He watched as she slowly rose, clearly unsure of herself. "Now, I want you to stand with your feet together. Hands down by your side, your eyes trained on the ground."
Scarlett quickly tried to arrange herself in the desired position. Sir Cade reached out and slowly tucked her arms in so they were touching the side of her thighs. Her feet were nudged into position.
"This is the Heel position. When I command it, you stand just like this. Understood?"
"Yes, Sir."
"Now, I want you to move your feet apart and place your hands behind your back."
Scarlett quickly moved into the position. Sir Cade walked around her and only gently nudged her elbow to have her arms drawn closer together.
"Very nice. This is the Attention position. Your feet should always be shoulder-width apart and your arms should be tucked behind your back, just like this. Understood?"
"Yes, Sir."
"We're going to run you through these positions for a bit longer. I want you to memorize these forms. It is an expectation of your service to me. If I touch you, it means your form is wrong and you have to fix it. Is this understood?"
"Yes, Sir."
"Kneel." He watched as she fumbled into the first position. Her back was straight and her head was bowed to her chest. Her hands were resting on her thighs, loose and facing upward. He glanced down at her legs before reaching out and tapping the top of her head. He watched her fidget under his gaze, her head and body shifting slightly as she tried to correct her posture. A small smile crossed his face as he watched her knees and legs slide together.
"Fair. Don’t fidget though," he muttered as he paced around her. "Attention."
Scarlett's body tensed as she tried to draw herself to her feet. The movement was slow, but soon she was standing before him. He reached out and tapped her side, watching as she drew her feet apart. He frowned at the space between them. He tapped her again and she widened her stance until her feet were at shoulder-distance. Her head stayed bowed as she corrected her position. He sighed as he gave her another tap and he watched as she drew her arms behind her back.
"Passable. We'll need to work on that form more." He spoke as he trailed around her. Her eyes stared resolutely at the floor. "Kneel Present."
He watched as Scarlett slowly moved to the ground, her knees thumping against the floor as she settled. Her legs slid together as the rest of her body rose. Her arms dangled by her side, but a touch from him had her arms snapping in front of her. Another touch and her arms slowly began to move behind her back.
"Good correction." He watched her form waver slightly as she held herself in that position. "Hold it." Scarlett's back drew up and her muscles tensed as she held her body upright. He stared at her for a moment. "Heel."