Shannon will break eventually if I let Eva continue...

As a man who loved Shannon, it was difficult for me to stand back and let Eva press Shannon into giving us what we wanted... But, as a man who loved Shannon's body, I saw no other option to bring about the results I needed in time. Therefore, I sat back and let Eva continue to do her thing.

"Come now, Shannon. I'm not trying to laugh at you or anything like that, here: if you know how to do it, won't you admit it and help me? There's no one else here who can."

"Ma'am, if I could, I certainly would," Shannon insisted, trying her hardest to remain straight as she'd been trained when she must want to shrink off into a corner. "But..." She went silent again, biting her lip.

"Shannon..." Eva lowered her eyebrows with a pitying smile. "I'm asking you nicely, but I'm going to get what I want, one way or another. Wouldn't you rather appease me while I'm still being nice?" Seeing Shannon flummoxed and unresponsive, Eva continued without waiting for a response. "If you didn't know at all, wouldn't the ordinary response be 'No, Ma'am, I don't know anything about it?' Instead, you're all bashful and squirming there. You can give me what I want, you just aren't... which, Shannon, is a very strange attitude for a servant to have towards an honored guest who is asking her sooo nicely, isn't it?"

Shannon lowered her eyes again and reddened even more. Getting cornered like Eva must be one of those workplace employee-boss nightmares...

I couldn't stand it anymore. Maybe it's way too late in the story for me to pretend to be chivalrous, but I thought I'd make the right offer that Eva herself would take a year to get around to. Shannon, Eva needs to learn how to do an erotic dance very quickly. We're willing to pay you for the time you spend to teach her, plus a very generous bonus we'll negotiate later if your service is exceptional.

Both the servant and Eva looked taken aback. As Eva clenched her teeth, Shannon gulped, looking at me with wide eyes. "I... suppose I could, only... the other servants will be looking for me. There's so much to do getting ready for tonight-"

"I'll tell Natsuhi you're working for me," Eva snapped with an impatient smile.

"Mm... W-well, I'll do what I can then, Ma'am... Mr. Player..." Shannon bowed to the two of us in a stupor. "Um, I'm a little uncoordinated, but allow me to do what I can-"

"Not yet!" Eva stopped her, then turned to me with a smile and a vein throbbing in her forehead. "Player, don't you have a lot to get ready? Shannon and I will practice somewhere else while you set this place up."

I tried to protest. I didn't like that idea at all, and I needed to be sure that Shannon actually had the right stuff, and I needed to make sure Eva didn't relentlessly bully her in my absence. More than anything... After standing up for Shannon and making sure she got paid, I really wanted to see her dance!

Unfortunately, Eva was right, and she knew it. Reminding Eva to tell Shannon about the full game later, and handing the servant a relatively small sum of money from the vast fortune in my briefcase, I allowed the two of them to leave. I'd just have to hope it would turn out okay... and trust in the power of my Pink Trigger, of course.