Chapter 4

Slave Scavo: Hey there.

Mary: Hi! Did you get in trouble again?

Slave Scavo: No. Well, yes, but not enough that I lost my comm again. I’ve just been busy.

Mary: Oh?

Slave Scavo: Master got a new client — he’s been hired to train a ‘pet’ for some rich guy. I’ve been being a training aid, example, and helper. Plus he decided to actively train me in how to use my new tongue.

Mary: Kneeling there licking something sounds pretty mindless to me. ;)

Slave Scavo: If I could do it mindless, I wouldn’t need training.  ;) Anyway, the new girl is getting the hang of it, and I’ve been given some time off while he trains her. Well, I have to do my chores, which have piled up a bit, but that is mindless.

Mary: Chores?

Slave Scavo: Laundry, cleaning, dishes, food, that stuff. Master’s got robots and nanos, but he likes the personal touch.

Mary: And it keeps you busy.

Slave Scavo: That’s probably part of it.

Mary: By the way, I looked into that foot-mod you were talking about, and I found out why it’s not common: It’s a class-5 mod.

Slave Scavo: Oh?

Mary: That means… Oh, you can look it up yourself. But anything above a class-4 needs a med-pad license.

Slave Scavo: Something most people don’t have, I take it.

Mary: No. You need to pass some pretty tough tests. And that’s not the half of it — I looked up the rest of the mods you told me about. The hair, of course, is a class-1, but that tongue of yours is a class-<em>12</em>. Not all hospitals are cleared for that level.

Slave Scavo: Wow. What’s the throat rated at?

Mary: I couldn’t find it in any catalog I could search. You sure it’s legal?

Slave Scavo: Yes. They even cleared it when they scanned me. Though Master did say it was something experimental he was trying out.

Mary: So maybe it’s not in the public catalogs. And I won’t tell you how much these all cost, except to say he’s spent a fair amount of money on you.

Slave Scavo: A lot?

Mary: A few months of your salary, at least.

Slave Scavo: Well, that explains why he made sure he talked the client out of copying my tongue on his pet. The guy seemed interested.

Mary: Saving him from sticker-shock? Yeah, it would do that. So how else has he been training you on your new tongue? :)

Slave Scavo: Well, a fair amount of time at the obvious, and I think he’s using me to ‘incentivise’ the new girl a fair amount just so I get practice on women as well. Also he’s taken to a new contraption that gives me tongue-twisters non-stop, and I have to spout them off correctly to get a reward. (And to avoid a punishment.)

Mary: ‘Suzie sell seashells by the seashore’, that sort of thing?

Slave Scavo: Or ‘Sexy Suzie submits sexually in the sea’s surf’ occasionally, but yes, that sort of thing. :)

Mary: Sounds fun.

Slave Scavo: It’s hard. And I swear he’s trying to give me an accent as well. I have to pronounce them perfectly. And quickly.

Mary: Ok, I’ll pity you. :)

Slave Scavo: Thank you.  :) How are you doing?

Mary: Same old, same old. Finally got around to breaking up with Fred; you were right, we just weren’t working.

Slave Scavo: How did that go?

Mary: Fine. We hadn’t actually seen each other for a few weeks, and when we finally arranged something… Well, I realized I hadn’t missed him. He agreed there just wasn’t anything there.

Slave Scavo: Sorry.

Mary: <shrug> we got along fine, and I think we’ll still be friends. We just didn’t have a reason to be a couple anymore.

Slave Scavo: Well, I’m still sorry. You were right; I was a bit anti-men, and that’s part of why I was telling you to look elsewhere. I’d forgotten what it means to be happy in a relationship.

Mary: This wasn’t your fault. And apparently your idea of being ‘happy in a relationship’ involves — what are you doing right now, again?

Slave Scavo: At the moment? I’m scrubbing the bathroom floor. With a hand-brush.

Mary: Right. Scrubbing the bathroom floor, on hands and knees. I’ll bet you’re naked as well.

Slave Scavo: Please. I’m wearing my collar. :)

Mary: At least the brush isn’t in your mouth.

Slave Scavo: He saves that for special occasions. Besides, I said I’m behind — that takes ages.

Mary: I’ll bet. Anyway, I have to run, but it’s good to hear you are doing ok.

Slave Scavo: Thanks. And have fun. See you later.

Mary: See you later.