Morning Check Ins

When Heather had walked out of Zach’s room, she realized a problem. Piper had been the one helping her with her belt. Caroline was still in the room with the two of them as well. She knew Melinda wouldn’t get out of her pod for another couple of hours and might not be in a state to help even when she did. That left Lynn and Xin, who were probably still asleep. No way am I going to ask Lynn for help, not to mention let her have the chance to give me a command, and I’m willing to bet the two are together. Shit, what do I do? Heather thought about it and decided her best bet was to wait for Caroline. So she leaned up against the wall by the elevator, as she didn’t want to be accused of eavesdropping on whatever was happening inside the room.

She wasn’t waiting long, as Caroline came down the hall angrily. Caroline’s demeanor changed upon seeing Heather was there waiting. Heather stood up and said, “You still have the power to give me one command today.” Heather frowned. “Just great, I’m willing to bet that’s going to keep happening each time we separate and then I see you again.”

Caroline hissed out under her breath, “This is completely ridiculous.” She spun on her heel and was about to go marching back into the room when Heather put a hand on Caroline’s shoulder. She spun back to face the woman and, still under her breath, angrily asked, “What!?”

“I could use your assistance. Please.” Heather’s voice quavered

Caroline’s anger broke. “Fine. Not like going back in there would do any good anyway.” Caroline smashed the elevator button to go down. The two of them decided to go to the swimming pool showers to handle Heather’s problem.

Along the way, Caroline asked, “Why do this to yourself? Why do this to try and be with a man who clearly wants to humiliate you? Frankly, I think you should take that stupid thing off and keep it off.”

Heather didn’t answer her immediately. Walking into the changing room area, Heather sat down on a bench and told Caroline, “I need you to use your command on me. I need something so I can flush the slime out of my system, and the only way to do that is an orgasm.”

“Then I want an answer to what I asked you,” Caroline replied.

Heather looked down. “Please, Caroline.”

“No, if you want my help prolonging something I vehemently disagree with, I want an explanation.”

Fuck… maybe Lynn would be a better choice… Xin would help, but that likely means getting a command from Lynn. Heather’s voice was unsteady as she spoke, “What else do I have?” Heather looked up at Caroline with moistening eyes and quivering lips. Heather saw Caroline’s face get a bit sympathetic as she was about to reply, but Heather cut her off with a wave of her hand. “You don’t understand. Yes, you’re stuck with him too, but it isn’t the same. Not even close.”

“Right, because his ability to literally reshape my daughter and me isn’t even close,” Caroline said disdainfully.

“Yes, that’s horrible, but what happens to you if you defy him? Especially if Piper is doing her best to stay on his good side? The answer is probably nothing. For me, I can’t do anything without his permission anymore. I can’t work at all. I can’t buy anything! That means food, gas for a car, insurance. I can’t go to the doctor without his permission unless there is a free clinic. I’ve also already realized I’m going to have to live with him for the rest of my life. Several times already, I’ve literally dropped whatever I was doing to cook for him and his date.”

Caroline retorted, “That doesn’t mean you should debase yourself for him. You could try and repair things with him in a far healthier manner.”

Heather said, “You don’t get it. He doesn’t want that. He refused couples counseling before all this. Before we were brought here, if he had reached out and offered me a chance with conditions attached, I would have accepted a lot. Probably not what he’s requiring of me now, but a lot. That was also before my life as I knew it was already over. So I’m going to take this chance even if it sucks and is humiliating and it’s slim, because it’s all I have.” Heather was crying by the end of her words, as her shoulders sagged.

Caroline felt bad for pushing Heather about this. She sat down next to her and gently pulled her into a motherly hug. Heather didn’t protest and cried into Caroline’s shoulder for a time. When she finally stopped crying, Heather wiped her face and asked, “So will you help me?”

Caroline nodded, “Yes. I still don’t think you should put it back on, but yes, I’ll help you. What exactly do you need from me?”

“I need a way to orgasm to get the slime out. The agreement I have with Zach is I can take the belt off once each day to clean out the slime. Piper pointed out that I wasn’t permitted to play with myself to get off to do that, though. I’m also allowed to be the person to unlock the belt.”

Caroline nodded, “Okay, but why didn’t you use the remote that you had before Zach took it this morning?”

“Like I told Zach, yesterday there was… well, Pita called it a game, but it wasn’t in any way fun. I lost. I’m hoping that a direct command from Zach’s transformation will bypass whatever this is. I also knew he wasn’t simply going to give me one of those. Hence why I asked what I did. So could you give me a command where, if I do something, I climax?”

Caroline said, “Okay, I’m ordering you to give me the key to your chastity belt and let me remove it. The second it comes off completely, you’ll have a powerful orgasm.”

Heather felt her body move of its own accord as she gave Caroline the key and pulled up her skirt to give Caroline access to the belt. Caroline went ahead and unlocked the belt. Heather then shimmied it down her legs while remaining seated next to Caroline. Which was a good thing she was sitting, as the second the belt was on the floor, Heather convulsed from the pleasure, and the slime squirted out on the floor.

Caroline caught Heather so she wouldn’t fall backward off the bench. Caroline then helped Heather stand and move to the showers. Caroline went back out to the changing area and saw the belt on the floor. I could force the issue. Then again, she’d probably just go back to Zach and ask for a new belt. She needs help. We all do, really. Caroline sighed and tossed the belt in the sink and then used several paper towels to wipe up the slime on the floor.

It took Heather fifteen minutes to come out of the shower. When she did, Caroline wasn’t there waiting for her. She saw the belt was in a sink with water running over it, and the key to the belt was on the sink counter. Heather sighed, made sure the belt was clean and dry, and then put it back on and slipped the key into her pocket. At least she was willing to help. Thanks, Caroline.

---

Lynn was up early. She was embarrassed to find that she was once again cuddling Xin. Not only had they deployed a pillow wall between them, which was thoroughly dismantled now. They had gotten out the extra sheets and blankets, and each of them was under different covers when they went to sleep. Somehow both of their covers wound up over both of them, and Lynn was holding Xin like a teddy bear.

The only saving grace for her was that she managed to slip out of bed without waking Xin, a full hour before they would normally be up. She saw that the schedules for today were on the table. She also saw that her schedule just had her morning routine, breakfast, yoga, and lunch on it, followed by a date with Master from the afternoon onwards. She then realized a problem when she saw Xin’s schedule. Oh… that’s really bad. Fuck!

Lynn was swearing at the fact that on Xin’s schedule at 10 pm was: masturbate to completion while thinking of you with the Master. It was also the curfew time. Why did it get moved back? I need to get Zach to change this. She mentally added it to her to-do list today. While Lynn was worried for Xin, even this wrinkle couldn’t dampen her enthusiasm today. A stellar date followed by intense sex. I’m finally going to get to sleep with him. Lynn was beaming as she went into the shower to get ready.

When she got out of the shower, wrapped in a towel, Xin was still asleep. The butler had appeared in the room and was setting up the displays for both of their wardrobes. Lynn said, “Good morning, Heraldo. How are you?”

Heraldo turned to look at Lynn. “You are up rather early, Lady Bowen, and rather chipper.” Heraldo did not talk about himself.

“Yeah, I’m just so excited for this afternoon… and even more excited for this evening.” Lynn blushed thinking about it.

Heraldo nodded in appreciation, “It is good you are eager to serve your Master. I’ve prepared your outfits for today.” He gestured to the three sets on the rack.

Lynn skipped over to examine the outfits. The first was the slinky, floor-length, black dress she had been given after her makeover at the salon. Oh, I’m sure that Zach would love to see me in this. Next was the same outfit she was wearing the night they were kidnapped and brought here. A white, low-cut blouse, a short black skirt that would cling to her, and spandex leggings. Hmmm, that has a sort of appeal to it as well. Maybe I can get him to reframe what I was wearing in the past as me showing my interest. The last option was the same apron that Xin had been given the day before. Lynn looked at Heraldo. “Seriously? On my date night, you make one of the options just an apron?”

Heraldo smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I call it the ‘Honey I’m Home’ look.”

Lynn frowned, Okay… that would be great, but I don’t think Zach is ready for that yet. Lynn nearly chose the slinky dress as she really wanted to wow her boyfriend. Lynn smiled and giggled. Heh, boyfriend… She picked up her outfit from the night of the kidnapping and pulled it against herself as she reveled in the fact that Zach was now hers.

Lynn started getting dressed and doing her makeup. Xin woke up as she was nearly finished. Xin yawned out, “Lynn? You’re up early.”

Lynn finished applying her lipstick. “Yeah, I was excited. I looked over both our schedules and outfits. I got some good news, and some really bad news.”

Xin rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “How bad are we talking about?”

“You might be in real trouble tonight.” Lynn glared at Heraldo. “So, good news is the schedule is light again. Just making sure we have proper meals, do our makeup, and exercise. You don’t even have practice or studying this afternoon. The bad news… Your mandatory masturbation session is scheduled for the same time as the curfew.”

Xin went pale. “What? You can’t be serious.” Xin turned to the ghost. “What gives? Why did it get moved back?”

“Delilah decided to move it. Not that I care, Miss Lee.”

Xin plopped down on the bed with a hundred-yard stare. “I’m screwed.”

Lynn said, “Don’t worry, I’m going to talk to Zach about this. Maybe he can at least move it up so you can get someone to listen to you play. If for some reason we can’t, I’ll set an alarm for 5 am and drag Zach down here to help you in the morning.”

“Thanks. You said you looked through my outfits? Any recommendations before I see them?”

Lynn nodded, “Yes… Also, I can’t tell if Pita likes you or hates you with these choices.”

Lynn picked up an outfit that vaguely resembled a school uniform. “I think you should go with this one personally, but it might lower your intelligence a bit.” It had a pleated skirt, but that was about the only thing that really gave off the schoolgirl vibe. The top was a long-sleeved pink shirt, with a white floral pattern on it. It came with heels, pantyhose, and a pink choker.

Xin asked, “How bad are the other two?”

Lynn grimaced as she picked up the next outfit. This one was definitely a schoolgirl outfit, just one suited for a pornstar. The skirt was maybe three inches long. There was no underwear for the outfit either. The top was a button-down shirt, except all the buttons were missing and it was several sizes too small. She was going to have to tie it together around her chest, and it would barely cover anything. To top it off were the six-inch fuck-me pumps.

Xin said, “Ah… I take it the third option is just as bad?”

“Yes, but in a different way.” Lynn held up a black T-shirt with a feminine cut, and a picture of a panda eating bamboo on the front ot it. There was a simple set of black panties and a matching bra, with knee-high socks and sneakers.

“Oh… I would be dumb as bricks in that.” Xin sighed.

“I would think so.” Lynn nodded. “Hence I’m recommending the compromise. I think the skirt will at least partially preserve your intelligence, but it is really your call.”

Xin frowned, not really liking any of her options. Xin turned to Heraldo, “You’re the one who chooses these outfits for us, right?”

“Normally that would be correct, Miss Lee, but Pita is selecting your outfits at the moment.”

Xin asked, “Is there any way I could get you to include a regular modest uniform that would let me keep or boost my intelligence tomorrow? Maybe from like a prestigious all-girls school.”

“What could you possibly offer me to do such a thing, Miss Lee?”

“What if I selected whichever outfit you wanted for me to wear to today?”

Heraldo thought about it. “No… I think not. At least that alone wouldn’t be enough.” Heraldo turned to Lynn. “Now that I think about it… If Lady Bowen here agrees not to bring up your predicament with Master Blackstone, as well as you, then I can see to it that your request is honored. That includes through the use of third parties or writing.”

Lynn immediately said, “No way! She’ll be an utter mess the following morning without help.”

Xin grabbed Lynn by the arm. “Hold on a second. Lynn, think about what Pita considers appropriate attire. Now consider what she’d view as date attire.”

“But you’ll be a mess.” Lynn countered.

“I… I can probably survive several hours like that. It isn’t like yesterday. Sure, I’ve been horny most of the week after masturbating, but I wasn’t at the point I’d jump Zachary at the first chance I got.”

Lynn looked concerned. “Are you sure?”

Xin hesitated. “I… I think so.”

Heraldo looked expectantly at Lynn. Lynn let out a weary sigh. “It’s your call. I’ll agree if you want me to.”

Xin nodded and said to the ghost, “Okay, deal.”

Heraldo turned to Lynn. “I need to explicitly agree.”

Lynn frowned. “Fine, I agree not to tell Zach about the scheduling issue.”

Heraldo smiled. “Then, Miss Lee, I’d like you to select the t-shirt and blue jeans. A good chunk of the audience voted for the school-girl transformation, and I suspect they were hoping to see you become a bimbo at least occasionally. So we will be humoring them.”

Xin winced at his pick. I really thought he’d have picked the stripper option. I don’t want to find out what he would do if I reneged on the deal. Xin went over and picked up the clothes, and then went to shower.

Lynn asked the ghost butler, “Why are you so grouchy and have to take it out on us?”

“Lady Bowen, I served royalty in life. Now, I’m reduced to serving the peasants of the world. Your Master is hardly deserving of the title, but he is at least better than the usual dregs that Delilah brings on here. He’s educated, has a spine, and is willing to act the part of Master, at least to some degree.”

“That still doesn’t explain why you have to be so horrible towards us.”

Heraldo’s neutral tone didn’t change as he replied, “Misery loves company. If you want better treatment from me, improve yourself.”

Lynn frowned as she pulled her hair up into a ponytail, in a further attempt to recreate her appearance on the night they were taken. Heraldo vanished along with the unchosen outfits a moment later.

Lynn decided to wait for Xin to get ready before heading out since their morning schedules were identical and she figured they might as well walk together.

When Xin came out of the shower, her hair was done up in a towel, but Lynn could see that Xin’s hair was still blonde. She was dressed in fairly normal clothes that made her look surprisingly cute. The most jarring change was the semi-vacant stare Xin seemed to have. Xin took a second just standing near the makeup table before taking a seat.

Lynn asked, “You okay, Xin?”

Xin’s voice seemed slightly higher and a bit more bubbly. “Oh, I’m okie dokie. Lynnie. I no remember, what Xin su-sup… meant to do?”

“Oh boy!” Lynn said worriedly. Lynn got up and grabbed Xin’s schedule. Then walked over and handed it to Xin. “Here is your schedule. Don’t lose it. Ask for help if you forget and I’m not around; ask one of the others, okay?”

Xin jumped up and wrapped Lynn in a tight hug. “Thanks, Lynnie! You da best bestie a gal could have.”

“Uh… thanks?” Lynn wasn’t sure what was going on as this seemed like more than simply an intelligence shift. “So let’s get your makeup squared away.”

Lynn was surprised as it didn’t seem that Xin needed almost any help with her makeup at all. I wonder if the transformation targets certain parts of her intelligence or brain… We’ll have to experiment more next round when we have more freedom over our clothing. Assuming she isn’t in here again.

Xin hopped to her feet enthusiastically, “Lynnie, time to get sweaty together.” Xin said, sliding her arm into Lynn’s and pulling her towards the door and their morning yoga routine.

Lynn let out a sigh of relief. At least she seems to remember what she needs to do for now. Lynn was about to learn how mistaken she was in that assumption.

---

Zach and Piper took the elevator down to the contestant rooms and went to check on Melinda. They could hear moans of pleasure coming from the sleeping pod even with it sealed. Zach moved to the back and pressed the button to open the pod early. Melinda’s moans stopped when it opened, but she was still twitching in pleasure and clutched her left hand tightly against her chest with her other one on top of it.

Piper said, “Holy mother of God, you really did a number on her.” Piper fanned the air in front of her as when the pod opened it suddenly reeked of sex in the room. The two both noticed the large wet spot on the bed as well.

Piper gently touched Melinda’s shoulder, seeing that she was awake, and asked, “Are you okay?”

Melinda didn’t verbally reply and just shook her head.

Piper asked, “What exactly did you do to her?”

Zachary helped Melinda sit upright as he said, “I gave her a command to let her get an idea of what I went through all these years because of her. Except instead of making her feel it as pain, I made it pleasure instead.”

Melinda didn’t resist Zach’s help, but continued to twitch occasionally.

“Then why is she like this?” Piper asked. “Did you make her experience all your pain as pleasure at once all night?”

Zach shook his head. “No, just my average daily pain. If it worked as intended, it wouldn’t have been constant either but would simulate what I would feel over the course of a day.”

Piper sat down next to Melinda, making sure to avoid the massive wet spot on the bed, and put an arm around her. “Melinda, can you talk to me?”

Melinda did a tiny but rapid shake of her head as she quivered.

Piper frowned. “Why is she nearly catatonic?”

Zach frowned. “I wonder if it converted my pain without my painkillers. It shouldn’t have, but it might have. If that’s the case, I’m not terribly surprised she’s like this.”

Piper looked at him. “Seriously?”

Zach said, “Yeah, I’ve been on daily Codeine for years now. I was on stronger stuff for the first year or two, though. Even with that, it still hurt fairly often, but it was at least manageable.”

“Fuuuck.” Piper let out softly.

Zach nodded, “Yeah… do you think you could help her get cleaned up and changed?”

Piper nodded, “Sure, I’ve been there. Not going to leave someone else hanging.”

Zach smiled appreciatively and went to wait in the hallway.

Piper spoke softly, “Think you can get to your shower if I help?”

Melinda nodded. Piper moved around to the other side of the bed and helped her to her feet. It was clear Melinda’s feet were a bit wobbly, but she wasn’t just deadweight for Piper to lift. The bathroom was tiny, and they had to squeeze through the doorway. Piper’s hand inadvertently wound up on Melinda’s breast, since she was still wearing her workout clothes from the day before. Her hand started fondling Melinda, causing her to let out a gasp of pleasure. Only after the second gasp, and Melinda stumbling forward, did Piper realize what she was doing and remove her hand from Melinda’s breast. She moved it to Melinda’s ass without realizing it, and began squeezing there instead.

Piper slowly got Melinda undressed and turned the shower on. Due to how cramped it was in the shower, Melinda simply sat on the floor of the shower, pressed in tightly by the sides as water flowed down over her. Piper went and got out a nurse uniform for when Melinda was done in the shower. The sleeping pod seemed to have closed on its own, preventing Piper from changing the sheets. After about fifteen minutes of waiting, Piper asked, “Are you okay for me to help get you out of there now?”

Melinda nodded and weakly said, “Yeah.”

Piper smiled at hearing her talk. Well, at least she isn’t broken beyond speaking. Piper shut off the water and helped the woman to her feet. Damn she’s hot as fuck. If this is supposed to be Zach’s fantasy woman’s body, he has good taste. It took several more minutes, but Melinda looked like a person. Particularly a very exhausted stripper or hooker, but a living person. Piper said, “Let’s get some food in you. I bet you’re starving.”

Melinda nodded. “Yes, please.”

Leaving the room, the two women found Zach sitting on the floor of the hallway. Melinda said in a very quiet voice, “You waited for us?” She hesitated before continuing and let out a weak, “Thank you, and I’m so sorry.”

Piper found Melinda’s reaction bizarre as fuck. “What? You’re thanking him? And sorry for what?”

Melinda didn’t reply as Zach stood up. “You’re welcome. I wanted to make sure you were okay, after all that.”

Piper looked to Zach. “Why the hell is she acting like this? Can you explain, since she seems not to want to or isn’t able to?”

“Well, the thanks I would assume is because I waited to make sure she was fine. It might also be for giving her insight into what I went through. The apology is because she now realizes how horrible my daily life has been because of her past actions.”

Melinda just nodded at Zach’s explanation, not trusting her voice that much at the moment. She was still leaning on Piper for support.

Piper frowned not understanding Melinda’s response all that well. Piper said, “Fine, I’m taking her to the canteen to get some food. You can either work out on your own or join us instead.”

“I’ll join you. At least for a bit.” Zach said as they proceeded to the elevator.

During the ride Melinda and Piper flanked Zach on a couch and he pulled each in close with an arm, causing the ride to be mostly smooth. Zach supported Melinda to a table while Piper grabbed her something to eat. After getting something inside her, Melinda started looking more and more normal. After her second helping of pancakes Melinda turned to Zach and asked, “Did I hear you right? You took daily Codeine?”

Zach nodded, “Yeah, once every morning and another if needed in the afternoon or evenings to sleep. It was usually twice a day.”

“Are you suffering any withdrawal? I assume you aren’t taking it still.”

“I don’t have any, and the absence of the pain actually made me forget to take it.”

Delilah appeared in a puff of smoke beside Melinda, startling her greatly as she wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “So great of you to care about your Master’s health. Such a good little harem member. Since I’m here anyway, now would be a great time to check about your little request.” Delilah turned to Zach. “Your personal nurse here requested your medical file. Does she have permission to view it?”

Zach said, “Sure, are you going to tell her how any of the magic I’m affected by interacts with anything?”

“I might; in fact, that’s why I’m here right now,” Delilah said playfully and as if she’s been nothing but helpful so far. “Now I didn’t bother giving Zachary a supply of his meds, as they really aren’t needed anymore. That being said, Zachary, you might experience some symptoms of withdrawal, but a lot of them your transformation takes care of. So at worst, you might have a couple days of nausea but you recover from everything much faster than normal now. Including this.”

As Delilah finished talking a patient chart dropped onto the table from thin air. Then she vanished in a puff of brimstone causing Melinda to cough at the smell of sulfur in her face.

Piper finished her bite of the doughnut she was nibbling at and commented, “Did that seem oddly helpful of her for no reason to anyone else?”

Zach and Melinda both nodded in agreement.

Melinda said, “Zach… seriously I’m so sorry. That much pain... I’ve seen people with horrible pain but even though it was pleasure instead, the intensity of it… experiencing it is something different. I don’t really think I’m in any state to do anything today but I’ll read over your file and do my best to come up with a recovery plan.”

Zach nodded, “I appreciate that.”

Piper nudged him in the side when he wasn’t saying anything more. Only getting a curious glance at her nudge, Piper said, “You could actually accept her apology, and forgive her.”

Melinda was about to say something but got cut off by Zach’s response. “Except I haven’t forgiven her. I know she’s repentant, and I do appreciate that, Melinda, really I do. But that doesn’t mean I forgive you. I think I’ll be able to one day, but it isn’t today.”

This time Melinda was the one to cut Piper’s retort off, “Thank you, and I understand. Experiencing that last night and knowing you went through it for years, I don’t think I would forgive me either.”

Piper frowned, “I don’t get either of you about this, but whatever. Melinda, are you good if I take him for a workout, or would you like at least one of us to stay?”

“I should be okay; my legs feel much better, and I don’t feel like I’m going to pass out. Even if I do feel like I need a nap. If you could write down what Zach does during the session, I’d appreciate it so I can track his progress.”

Piper nodded, “Sure. No problem.” She stood and looked expectantly at Zach, who followed after her a moment later.

As Melinda watched the two turn around the corner towards the elevator, she flipped open Zach’s medical file and began reading as she continued her breakfast.