"Robert? Would it be okay if I did some work on the computer tonight? I have an idea for a lecture and I'd like to make some notes." They were on their way back to the apartment. He was holding her hand as they walked.

"I don't see why not. What's your idea?" He encouraged her to write as much as possible. She showed promising talent.

He spotted her hesitation when she didn't answer immediately. "Or would you rather wait till you filled in the blanks first?" That gave her an out to put him off till later.

"Do you mind? I'm still not sure exactly what I want to say, or even what questions to ask." He could hear the relief in her voice. One of her mannerisms was to pause when she didn't have a good answer to one of his direct questions. It was her way of communicating her desire to think about it first. She found it difficult to tell him no or be evasive. He understood the reasons why and used the pause to give her permission to hold off on responding. If he didn't say anything then she knew she was obliged to answer as best she could. It was a delicate verbal dance but it worked for them.

When they got home he ordered her to sit down and start typing while he fixed dinner. She offered a half-hearted protest which he cut off immediately. "Don't argue. Ideas can slip away if not captured in the written word," he told her, pointing to the keyboard. Robert wanted her to get her ideas on the screen as soon as possible.

While he cooked he watched her at the computer. At first her fingers pecked away, a few words at a time. Then the pace picked up until she was typing away furiously. Just as he suspected, something had been rolling around in the back of her head all day long. Now the ideas were pouring out her fingertips.

Dinner was ready before she was. He leaned back against the sink, folded his arms and watched her back. About five minutes later the typing slowed and then came to a stop. She took her hands off the keyboard and turned around.

"Oh! Is dinner ready? I'm so sorry, you should have said something."

"That's alright. The food's still warm. You had to finish; that's more important." He took down two plates from the cupboard and put them on the table. "Did you come up with something good?"

"Yes! Or I think I did. May I come into the kitchen?" Robert glanced at her. He had never told her to ask permission to enter or leave a room; it was something she started to do on her own. He was still ambivalent about letting her continue.

"Come join me at the table." He dished out dinner onto their plates, a salad on the side followed by macaroni and cheese with chopped ham bits. It was a modest meal, and they could always eat in the cafeteria, but he liked the conversation over supper. "Want to tell me about it now?"

"Yes, and thank you master for letting me wait." She stabbed a cherry tomato from her salad bowl. "After our walk today I got to thinking about Cathy five years ago versus Cathy today. I've changed so much. How did you ever tolerate me?" She bit into the tomato.

Robert had to laugh at her question. "Cathy, think about what happened. I didn't tolerate you, not the part that was temperamental and self-centered. That's what earned you a ticket here the first time. The rest of you I fell in love with; it wasn't a question of tolerance."

She nodded, agreeing with him. "Sending me here was the best thing you ever did for me. I'm not exaggerating Robert. I couldn't stand the old me now. That's what I was thinking about. Why is it I feel so much better about myself today? And this is the question that I want to develop: Am I really happier with myself now or have I been brainwashed into believing the new me is better?"

"Brainwashed? Isn't that a little strong?"

"And the philosophy behind this school isn't? It's not a yes or no question though. I can truthfully tell you I've never been more content with my life than right now. I can't even imagine living any other way than as your property. If you were to ask me what I would change to improve it, I wouldn't be able to give you an answer. You'd have to tell me, because you seem to understand what I need better than I do.

"I know what you've done to me. I know what living here has done to me. I can clearly see the progression that's taken me from pampered and spoiled plaything to a woman who is so devoted to her man she would make any sacrifice for him. But has that same progression programmed my brain in some insidious manner to where I've convinced myself that becoming permanently dependent on you is the only way I can be happy?"

"You knew my intentions from the beginning." Even as he spoke Robert could hear the defensive tone he was taking.

Cathy nodded in agreement. "Of course I did. You made it clear you were the breadwinner and I should learn to rely on you. I made a conscious decision to stay with you on your conditions. And I made that choice before you sent me here. That's what clouds the question. Thing is, I may be the one doing the brainwashing, not you and this place. I deliberately buy into the message that it's a good thing to be submissive. I've talked myself into the situation I find myself in now."

Robert leaned back in his chair, unsure how to respond. Her original question now was so convoluted he was having a hard time keeping track of where she was going. "You may be twisting words in describing your own perspective. Did you talk yourself into it, or did you work to achieve a goal you set for yourself? Maybe you saw what you wanted and went after it?"

She smiled. "That sounds more like you. It's what I'd like to believe. Is it brainwashing if you do it to yourself? I thought about all that, but then another question came to mind.

"What about you, Robert? Are the tables turned here? Am I the one changing you into the ideal man for me? Are you being brainwashed into being my master and owner? I recognize some of the ways you get inside my head and do things to me; in some subtle way do I perform the same magic on you? That's as far as I've gotten on my notes."

Her concept of the dominant shaped by the submissive was a surprise to Robert. His first reaction was to laugh it off, but she did have a point that was difficult to ignore. He had changed too, changes that in hindsight were triggered by her behavior. He ruled by dictatorial fiat; she influenced by soft words spoken late at night. Who was to say which had more effect? He stared at Cathy, wondering if he should be the one questioning his role in the relationship.

"I'm convinced you can read my mind, so yes you do get inside me too." He didn't object. She needed a deep and pervasive understanding of how he was wired inside his head. He tried to help her understand the way he saw the world as much as he could. Conversations like the one they were engaged in over the dinner table now were ideal. "You do bring about changes in me, but I feel it's more a process of opening doors to what's already there.

"It's something of a coincidence you brought this up tonight. Are you aware you've been practicing some of your magic on me the last couple of weeks? I bet you didn't even realize it."

Her shocked reaction convinced Robert she had no idea what he was talking about. "Me? What am I doing? You're perfect, don't you dare change into a rabbit on me!"

He laughed. "Nothing like that, I'll stay a wolf for now. I've spotted two differences since we arrived. First, you seem to have adopted an indifferent attitude toward wearing clothes. And second, you've been steering me toward more control over your actions when we are together. The way you ask for permission to stand up or sit down, or enter and leave a room, you've come up with those requirements on your own."

Cathy put a hand over her mouth. "I'm so sorry, master. I won't do it again. I didn't think. You should have corrected me sooner…"

"No, no, no." Robert held up a hand to stop her. "You haven't done anything wrong. I told you, I noticed. I chose to let you continue. It looks like another door is opening, because I think I like it."

She looked relieved. "It must be the place. When I go to the other side, it does something to me. I can't help it, Robert. There's so much pressure to be perfect, it makes me want to prove to you I can do it. I want to hear you order me around, to know you are firmly in charge. I can do it, master. Tell me what to do, anything."

He took hold of her hands. "For starters come back to earth." Robert knew he had to be careful what he said next. A simple reassurance that she had already proven herself wouldn't make an impression. She needed more.

"Yes sir." She wouldn't look him in the eye. It was time for something more direct than words.

"Stand up," he ordered, changing to a crisp, assertive tone of voice. Cathy could have set a world record in the time it took her to get out of her chair. "In front of me, now, right here." He pointed to a spot on the kitchen floor. She was there in a flash.

"Head up, and straighten your back. Hands at your side. Eyes front, no talking." Robert stood up and walked around her. Her stare didn't waver. Behind her back he smiled. He had her undivided attention now.

"Strip." He backed up to give her room. The dress came off in less than a second. "Put it on my chair." She dropped it where he had been sitting. As usual she had nothing on underneath, except for the chastity belt.

If she missed the rigid protocol imposed on the women still incarcerated in the school then he could accommodate her. Leaving her standing in the kitchen he went to the closet by the front door. Inside was the equipment belt he wore when in uniform. He opened the carrier on the back of the belt.

When he turned around he caught her furtive sideways glance in his direction. She hadn't moved from the spot in the kitchen but she could see what he was doing. Back in the kitchen he stopped behind her. He paused to admire the fall of her hair across her bare shoulders. He'd never seen her wear her hair short. These days he wouldn't allow her to change, but when they'd first met the way she had gone against the fashionable short pageboy hair-do of the day and kept her hair long and straight had caught his attention.

"Hands behind your back." She knew it was coming, judging from the way her hands suddenly appeared in front of him, precisely positioned. He took his time locking on the handcuffs, carefully checking the fit and tightness on each wrist. When he took hold of her upper arm he felt a tremble. Yes , he told himself, it was exactly what she needed .

The center of the living room was only a few feet away in their small apartment, but he kept the pace as slow as he could. On the way he grabbed a large cushion from the couch and threw it down. He turned her to face the sofa and put a hand on her shoulder. "Kneel before your master. Present yourself for my approval."

Without any hesitation she dropped to her knees. As he sat down she maneuvered into the position she had practiced time and again at the school. Robert sat down in front of her and folded his arms, staring at his most prized of all possessions as she tried her best to please his eye. Mindful of his own obligations he carefully examined the angle of her legs, the width her knees must be spread, head high but eyes focused at a spot in front of her. Tonight she was definitely on her best behavior because he found no fault.

"This is why you are a teacher instead of a student. How many women are over there tonight, wishing they could be like you? You set the standard they aspire to, Cathy. You define the perfection they so eagerly want to copy."

She showed no external reaction to his words. Robert would have been taken aback if she had. Presenting herself required she remain motionless while he examined her at his leisure. But he was sure he saw the briefest of smiles cross her face before she got it under control.

"Now we can continue our discussion. You may speak but you are not permitted to change the subject. You are not released from your position." He enjoyed it when she exhibited herself to him. He knew she liked it too. The long hours of enforced practice as a student in front of a mirror now paid off. She knew his words weren't empty praise; she had earned them.

"Yes sir." She didn't look directly at him when she answered. Part of the training she had received stressed development of the concentration to keep her eyes focused on one spot, no matter the distraction.

"The way you phrased your question is laden with semantic tricks. You choose words like brainwashing , something with a dark, evil, malevolent history. I won't deny I try to steer your mind in certain directions; you do your best to influence me in return. But neither is necessarily a Bad Thing."

He didn't want her staring at the floor. "You have permission to move your head. I would prefer you look at me when we talk."

Immediately she raised her eyes. "Yes sir."

"We aren't working at cross-purposes. You and I are growing closer; it's only natural for us to try to accommodate each other in the process. You are telling me in a subtle way you want me to expand the ways I dominate you. I listened and decided it was a good idea."

Cathy shook her head. "I don't disagree with you but I have to ask if there's more to it. Maybe I'm asking more from you not to fulfill some desire on my part, but because I feel the pressure to do it from the school's influence."

Robert scratched his chin. He wasn't a believer in complex and convoluted explanations when there was a simple alternative. "Granted that could be a possibility, but it's just as easy to explain by assuming you want something and you're asking me for it in the way you are most comfortable. If it's brainwashing then you would do it in spite of what you want. Is that true?"

Cathy frowned, "I'm not sure, sir. Can I trust my feelings? I'm not sure what to think. I can say I believe I'm happy with my life. Most of the time at least. There are some moments when the restrictions get to me but on balance the good outweighs the bad.

"There was a time that kneeling before you like this, naked and bound, would have seemed like something out of a nightmare. Now? I love it! Is there something wrong with me, Robert? Being in the school, the regulations, the discipline, I thrive on it. Why?"

Robert stood up, towering over her. He began walking around her as she knelt in position on the floor. She started to turn her head to follow him but he pointed to the couch. "Eyes front, you do not have permission to speak. Mind your position." He stopped as she shifted her body slightly. Her head lowered as she stared at a spot on the floor.

Standing behind her he ran his eyes down her back to where her hands were shackled, just above the waistband of her chastity belt. On impulse he crouched down and ran a hand down her back. He felt her tense as he touched her. He leaned forward as he took hold of the chain between her wrists.

"Why?" he whispered in her ear. "Because it's what you crave, Cathy, as much as me. You are special, someone who can let go and give me what I most desire. You know it too. You trust me with your life. Not in some abstract way either, but in ways we can both see everyday. There's nothing wrong with you Cathy, and you aren't brainwashed into believing some fantasy." He jerked on the cuffs holding her wrists. "These are real. The collar around your neck is real. The punishment for being disobedient or failing to please is real too. But none of those scare you, do they? You aren't afraid, because deep in your heart you know you belong here."

Robert stood up and went back to his place on the couch. He leaned forward and lifted up her chin. "You look for complex explanations when there are simple answers. You and I are partners; we work for each other in our own ways. I am the dominant partner, I take you where I think we should go, but I count on you to help me read the map and find our direction. There is no brainwashing Cathy. You bring out the parts of me you want to see, and I do the same for you."

He leaned back, stretching out his arms on the sofa back. "Of course, some parts are easier on me." He smiled as he looked her over again. "I'd hate to have to kneel like that, and that belt would drive me crazy. I do so enjoy seeing you like this though."

He crossed his arms as he studied the woman in front of him. "Spread your knees, wider," he ordered on a whim. She immediately complied. The gleam of the belt as it ran between her legs was clearly visible. "Straighten your back, keep your head high." She straightened, looking directly at him, almost defiant.

"Right now, right this second, look at your reaction. Is it anger, resentment…or is it pride? Pride in being a woman who can please her man, pride in how perfectly you obey my every command, pride in showing me you can be everything I could ask for, while still being true to yourself?" He locked eyes with her, holding her to him.

"I'm not going to let you answer, because it isn't necessary."