Interlude and discussion

A few minutes later, she was drinking a large glass of Sprite. She was still wearing the trenchcoat, and she looked disheveled, but I had untied the lasso and she had regained a little bit of her composure. This was going to take time -- no matter how much she helped me, I was still going to be retraining her in these meetings -- making her into my lover first, a goddess or superheroine second. That meant invading those parts of her she tried to hide, and doing too much of that too quickly meant she would resist or resent. "That... wasn't what I expected," she said, finally.

"What do you mean?"

"I... thought you'd strip me naked and take me," she said. "No prelude, just ****."

"Did you hope for that?"

She glanced at the lasso in my hand, though she wasn't currently bound by it. "I don't know," she said. "Somewhat."

"We'll play with that some. You've never climaxed in front of someone before, have you?"

"No, I haven't," she said, looking away. "Much less while being touched. No one's ever..." she shivered.

"You all right?" I asked, smiling slightly.

"Who can tell?" she asked, almost laughing. "I feel...."

I arched an eyebrow.

"I feel... female."

"Don't you always?"

"I don't know. I'm so busy being Wonder Woman... I don't always let myself feel like womanly." She looked at me. "Is that... Hera help me, I can't believe I'm even going to ask this..."

"Go on," I said, smiling.

"Is that what it's like... what a woman's supposed to be? Captive to a man? Submissive?"

I chuckled. "I don't think any given woman's supposed to be anything, Diana. I think you like a certain amount of submission. I've known other women who hate it."

"You called me a whore," she said, looking away.

"I said people would think you're a whore," I countered. "And so what?"

"Excuse me?"

"Diana, you of all people know that for years, temple prostitutes and women like them saw the transaction as sacred. You know there are plenty of working girls out there who aren't ashamed of what they do -- who embrace it, and do what they love because they love it."

"I'm... supposed to live up to a higher standard. I'm supposed to be...."

"Wonder Woman?"

"I am Wonder Woman. I'm supposed to epitomize women."

I half smiled. "In here, you're Diana. And Wonder Woman. But you don't epitomize anyone but yourself, do you understand me? In here, you're you." I slowly smiled. "Which is nice. If all womankind were in here, my landlord would throw a fit. I'm not supposed to have parties."

She laughed. Then paused, almost startled.

"It's okay to laugh," I said.

"I'm not sure it is," she said, softly. "Remember, this is all ****."

"I remember," I said. I smiled a bit. "Diana?"

"Yes?"

"Go into the bathroom, straighten yourself out a bit... and when you come out... leave the trenchcoat behind. I want Wonder Woman to come out."

She paused, then nodded, finishing her Sprite and setting the glass down. "I'll be right out," she said.

I watched her go in, and I slowly smiled.