Scarlett tried not to fidget as her new dress was pulled over her head. A handmaiden was lent out to her to help her prepare for the ball tonight. The woman had immediately ordered Scarlett to strip and she was pulling the dress over her head once her skin was bare. The dress was similar to her daily wear, a corset with lace covering the rest of her body. It was much shorter though, just barely reaching her mid-thigh, and most of the skirt was made of a sheer lace. Only a short pair of shorts hid her privates from everyone.
“Breathe in,” the handmaiden commanded. Scarlett quickly sucked her stomach in and winced when the corset was tightened. The gold corset had been tightened twice before, but the handmaiden seemed determined to give Scarlett a very tapered waist. “Good.” The woman moved back to the door after she had managed to squeeze the air out of Scarlett’s lungs.
Scarlett looked at herself in the mirror. The gold corset looked gorgeous and the flowery design in the lace was striking. She was going to make quite the impression today, which she was sure was Prince Cade’s goal when providing her with this outfit. Despite all the beauty in the outfit, Scarlett’s stomach tightened as she looked at her reflection. She smoothed her hands over the front of the dress. This just doesn’t seem right she thought Something about this is just off. Maybe-
She was interrupted before she could dive more into those thoughts. The handmaiden had returned, this time with a small bag clasped in her hand.
“Sit,” she ordered. Scarlett lowered into the seat by the mirror and the woman stood above her. She fished out a powder and pad and began to dab it all over Scarlett’s face. A dust of powder immediately went up around the two women. Scarlett’s nose wrinkled as she tried not to sneeze. When the handmaiden stopped applying the powder, Scarlett twitched her nose to try and get the feeling to go away.
Scarlett allowed her brain to wander as the woman worked on her face. Powders were applied to her eyelids and cheeks. A swab of color was dabbed on her lips. All the while, her mind drifted. She thought about the training sessions that she had had with Prince Cade. He had trained her to polish his boots and to hump them. They had also worked some more on her oral skills and Prince Cade had seemed pleased with her progress.
“Done,” the woman said. She immediately rushed out of the room and left Scarlett alone. Scarlett shook at her head before turning to look in the mirror again. The makeup hadn’t been overdone, but she couldn’t recognize herself in the mirror. She had never worn makeup when living with her uncle. She looked at herself for a little while longer, taking in all the differences, before shaking her head and moving away from the mirror. Her head began to drift away from the present and to somewhere else.
She sat down on her bed and fished her paper out from under her pillow. She slowly traced over the words she had written earlier in the day. Her handwriting had begun to straighten out and become more legible during her sessions with Miss Lyra. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but she had heard no complaints from her uncle since she had begun to send him letters. She had sent out three so far, but her uncle had not sent one back yet. She carefully slid the paper back under her pillow before getting up and pacing the length of her room.
She paused by her bedside and grabbed a worn piece of paper. She unfolded the schedule that she had been given two weeks ago and began to scan the writing. Creases littered the paper from how many times she had opened and closed the letter, but the words were still legible. Miss Lyra had worked with her over the past two weeks to improve her reading and she was pleased that she had been able to read most of the schedule when she tried again this week. She had not been provided with an updated schedule this week and she hadn’t found Miss Ava in order to question her about it.
A knock on the door had her rushing to put the paper down and open the door. Prince Cade had informed her that he was going to be by later tonight in order to escort her to the ball. When she swung the door open, her lips parted as she took in Sir before her. Sir because there was no doubt that this wasn’t Prince Cade, not to her right now.
Sir was dressed in a long black coat with a gray shirt underneath. The shirt was unbuttoned to the middle of his chest and his cleavage was framed by the fabric. Black slacks hung from his hips with a scabbard tied around his waist. His boots were new and polished and Scarlett’s tongue flicked out as she took in the sight of the leather gleaming in the light.
“Miss Amaris,” Sir’s voice broke through her and she quickly lifted her gaze from the floor. “We’ve got to go. Do you agree to be collared for the night?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Lift up your hair.” She gathered up her red tresses and pulled it away from her neck, watching Sir as she did so. He reached behind her neck, unclipping her collar and placing it down carefully on the nearby table. Shivers went up Scarlett’s spine as she felt the air brush across her bare neck. He grabbed something from his right side and held it up in front of her. This collar was made of two strips of leather that could be buckled to secure it around her neck. They were connected with a chain looped around rings that hung from both strips. An o-ring hung from one part of the chain.
Scarlett felt her breath catch as Sir stepped close to her and slowly buckled the material behind her neck. He pulled back once it was secured and traced a finger across the leather. Scarlett tipped her head back when Sir looped his finger in the o-ring and pulled it lightly. The chain slipped through the rings and the leather strips tightened on Scarlett’s neck. She whined slightly when he released the tension and the collar loosened again.
“This is a slip collar. I need you to be honest with me if I pull too hard or for too long. Understood?”
“Yes, Sir.” Scarlett didn’t recognize the sound of her own voice as she spoke. Her voice shook slightly as she spoke and she was surprised Sir was able to hear her with how soft her words came out.
“Good.” He slid a strip of leather from the side of his pants and clipped one end into the o-ring. Scarlett stared at the leash as it hung from his hand. He noticed her watching and he smirked as he pulled slightly. The leather tightened again and Scarlett’s eyes fluttered as she stared at his hands. Sir wrapped his end of the leash around his hand and used it to tug Scarlett closer to him. “Now, when you are on my leash you are not to make eye contact unless directed to do so, but you also don’t have to stare at the ground. We don’t want you tripping. You will NOT embarrass me. This leash is just to make sure you don’t…wander or need correction. Understood?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Then let’s go.” He used the leash to tug Scarlett behind him as they made their way through the castle. Scarlett hurried to stay close enough to him that the collar didn’t hurt, but far enough away so that she wasn’t under his feet as he walked. None of the maids looked up as the two of them made their way through the halls. Scarlett’s cheeks were filled with heat as she followed Sir, the leash and her outfit making her feel like she was on display for anyone to see. She stumbled into Sir when he stopped at the entrance to the ballroom.
“Be on your best behavior,” he whispered to her before nodding to one of the footmen. The man opened the door and Scarlett followed Sir into the room.
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“May I introduce, His Royal Highness Prince Cade and his personal servant.” Sir pulled on her leash and began to lead her through the room. He was headed towards the back where Queen Helena was seated.
Scarlett fought to maintain her composure and keep her eyes from widening when she noticed the amount of people that were in the room. She tried to be discreet as she looked around the room. Royals filled the vast chamber decked out in suits and dresses made from fabrics that she was sure she had never heard of, much less seen. Many of the royals had their servants tucked into their sides or kneeling by their feet, usually with a leash connecting the two parties. A few had their servants behind them, acting more as a guard than as a servant. Scarlett even spied a couple that seemed to have no servants present at all.
“Cousin,” a woman said as she approached the duo. Scarlett slunk back, tucking herself partly behind Sir. The other woman was dressed in a lavish green dress. The skirt was layered with different shades of green overlapping one another. The sleeves flared out around her arms as she reached out to Sir. He greeted the other woman warmly, hugging her tightly with the arm not holding Scarlett’s leash. “You finally got a new servant.”
Sir chuckled as he pulled Scarlett up to his side. “Yes, well, you know how it is.” The woman hummed before stepping towards Scarlett. Sir stepped back from her, but left her standing in front of the woman.
Scarlett held herself ramrod still, eyes focused on the ground as the other woman walked around her. Heat built up in her stomach. She couldn’t see the other woman, but she was sure that she was judging her. She could feel the heat of where the woman’s eyes were trailing up and down her body and over the swell of her breasts. Scarlett gulped down a gasp as she felt her nipples tighten under the attention.
“She’s…pretty,” the woman muttered.
“She is.” Scarlett’s blush deepend at Sir’s easy agreement. “Where is your servant for the evening?”
“He’s over by your mother. I left him there to come greet you and your new pet.” Scarlett’s neck tensed at the word. The woman’s tone was light, but the words seared a heat in Scarlett’s belly.
“Don’t call her that. It’s not been discussed.” Sir’s voice cut through Scarlett’s thoughts and she watched the woman back off a few steps.
“My apologies to you and to her. I overstepped in my enthusiasm.” The woman looked at Sir and then at Scarlett, but the redhead was sure to keep her eyes away from the other woman’s. “Your mother is summoning you, I will walk with you.”
A tug on her collar urged her to follow Sir again as he and the other woman began to move again. Sir moved them through the crowd smoothly, not stopping even when others tried to gain his attention. Soon they were nearing the throne. The Queen was dressed in a pale blue dress. Gold and silver designs decorated the fabric. A darker, fur-lined cloak was draped over the back of her throne. Scarlett thought she saw a flash of red on her sleeve as the woman gestured to her personal guard.
“Mother,” Sir greeted as he bent down to peck Queen Helena on the cheek. The woman smiled at him as he drew back.
“My child. It’s good to see you. Mistress Grey did an excellent job on your outfit.”
“I’m pleased with it. She does good work.”
“She does.” The Queen leaned towards her child and kept her words soft. “Is she prepared? King Landyn and Prince Maxwell are both eager to see her performance.”
“She’s as prepared as she could be considering the rush.” Sir continued speaking but Scarlett’s attention was dragged away as she noticed two men stood and began to work their way through the crowd. She kept her eyes on them even as Sir pulled away from his mother. Each man had a young woman on the end of their leash and they were pulling them through the crowd as they moved. Scarlett felt Sir tug on her own leash as he led her to a nearby table. Before they could sit, the men were next to them. Sir turned to slide his chair out and stepped back when he noticed the intruders.
“King Landyn. Prince Maxwell,” Sir greeted. “It has been a while. Maxwell, you’re looking well. The infantry seems to be keeping you in good shape.” Sir moved Scarlett behind him as he moved forward to greet the two men with a handshake.
“Prince Cade,” the older man responded. “We were sorry to hear that we hadn’t initially made the cut.”
“Especially when we heard that you had a new servant.” The younger man said. Scarlett looked down as she felt his eyes trail over her body. This felt different than the woman earlier, more predatory. Sir tugged on her leash until she was tucked against his side, one hand sliding across her waist.
“The courier must have gotten lost with your invitation. We’re just glad we were able to make arrangements to fit you in.” Sir threw a smile their way as he spoke. The men merely stared back at him. Sir kept his hand on Scarlett’s waist as the trio looked at each other. After a minute, Sir broke the silence. “Have you already spoken with my mother?”
“Yes, we have. We greeted her when we came in.”
Sir hummed, but didn’t continue addressing the men in front of them.
“Is this your new servant?” The two men moved closer to Scarlett to get a better view of her and she shrunk back against Sir.
“Yes. This is Scarlett.” Sir moved one of his hands to rest on the back of Scarlett’s neck. Rough callused fingers gripped the skin there and he squeezed lightly. Scarlett bowed her head at the action, moving her eyes to face the ground. “She joined me only recently, but has served me well thus far. I anticipate her being around for a while longer.”
“She must be something impressive then if you’re willing to keep her around.”
“Pardon?” Sir leaned forward and made direct eye contact with the man who spoke.
The older man laughed before leaning closer into their space. “You’ve never been big on servants, not since your last one. For this one to capture and keep your attention, she must be something.”
“I was never against servants. I was against untrained servants and it seemed like every servant that applied for the position was untrained. Scarlett has managed to prove herself capable of following orders. If she continues to do so, she will continue to serve me.” Sir’s hands gripped and released Scarlett’s neck as he spoke, fingernails dragging lightly against her skin as he did so.
“Understood, Your Highness,”
“Now then. I believe they are about to summon us for the meal. You may wish to return to the rest of your group.”
The two men left and Sir scoffed before leading Scarlett back over to where his cousin was sitting with a lanky man kneeling by her side. Sir sat in the chair next to her and Scarlett kneeled on the cushion in front of his chair. Sir could reach out and grab her if he needed, but the only thing currently connecting the washer leash. She heard the two royals converse above her, but she allowed her attention to drift. Instead she looked at the other personal servants in the room. They were dressed in various colors and fabrics. Some wore long ball gowns and others had been dressed in skimpy clothing that left most of their skin bare. Many of the other submissive’s were kneeling by the feet of their dominant’s, but a few of the dominant’s had their submissive’s perched on their laps.
Scarlett felt heat crawl up her neck when she noticed one particular dominant had her hand tucked under the skirt of her submissive. Her hand was not visible, but Scarlett noticed the submissive’s skirt moving up and down from the woman’s actions. The dominant continued to make conversation with the others around the table, but she didn’t stop the movement of her arm. The submissive’s face was bright red and her teeth were dug into her lips to keep her from making a scene.
“Looks like Nyria is putting on a show,”
“She always does. That woman is insatiable and loves to have eyes on her.”
“She’s definitely captured the attention of your girl.”
Scarlett’s attention flew back to Sir when he snapped twice. Her eyes roved over his face as she awaited a command or reprimand.
“You can watch,” he allowed. “As long as you still respond to me.”
The woman next to him leaned over and whispered something in Sir’s ears. Scarlett couldn’t make out what was said, but she watched their eyes glance over at the two men who had stopped by earlier. The men were talking, but their eyes kept flicking over to their small group.
Sir snapped again before tapping his right hip. Scarlett shuffled forward, pulling her cushion forward with her as she moved. She moved to sit right next to Sir’s hip, resting her side along the length of his chair legs. She tilted her head to the side, letting it rest against Sir’s hip. He dropped a hand into her hair and let it rest there.
“That should help,” the woman muttered before she leaned away and addressed her servant.
“Good girl,” Sir whispered. The group continued to sit in silence as they observed the other ball-goers. Eventually a door at the front opened and a guard strolled through the door. He banged a pole against the floor twice and waited as everyone in the room wrapped up their conversations.
“Thank you for your patience. Lunch is served.”