Slave Girl Ch. 01-11

"Don't you ever leave me like that again!" She says between her hard panting.

I bring my hand to my face. The slap hadn't hurt but it certainly shocked me. A slave hitting their master! She could be flogged for such an offense. "How dare you!"

"How dare YOU!" She shoots right back. She wasn't just upset, she was furious. She steps back her hands balled up at her sides, her ears back flat, her shoulders and chest rise and fall with her rapid breath as her vibrant eyes burn with rage. "Were you just going to abandon me out here by myself? Leaving me by the side of the road?"

"No." I confess in a low voice. "I would have come found you."

"If you wish to sell me...then sell me." She says as the glimmer of tears begin to form in the corners of her eyes. "But don't abandon me. Don't ever abandon me! You might not need me...but I need you."

"I...I wouldn't do that." I say in a softer tone. "I wouldn't..." I let out a huff. "Did you eat?"

She sniffles and angrily wipes the tears away. "Of course I did. I would never disobey you like that in public."

"Good." I nod. "It was your lying tongue and your skillful hands that earned that meal. You can leave me out of your...ruses."

"Lying tongue?" She shakes her head in frustration. "I didn't lie, I embellished. Master, Gaius is a businessman. Do you think everything he said was the full truth? Do you think he actually believed everything we said? Come on now. It's just a part of the give and take of things. Part of the game. Those magical tesserae aren't nearly as rare and don't work nearly as good as he claims. Buttering up clients is part of his business. He was happy to share a meal and a rest with you. Even if you didn't become a customer it keeps him sharp and gets his name out there. Wheeling and dealing and building connections is the lifeblood of men like him. And you never know, perhaps you'll have need of him or his services at some point. These things are small but important." She says with rising emphasis. "You might not understand it but I do. Let me help you! Let me serve you! Please!"

I cross my arms. "People ought to say what they mean and mean what they say."

"If only life were so simple."

"It is. Or it was, back home."

Ignoring my comment she goes on. "I explained to him that you acted as you did because you were still bereaved from your uncle's death. He understood."

"Another lie."

Her face flinches but she lets the comment go. Looking to the stoppered amphora she says. "The wine is a gift to help ease your grief."

"You shouldn't have accepted."

"I didn't have a choice. I'm just a slave." She says with exasperation. "And my master wasn't there. Besides, I thought it was nice. Gaius is crass but he has a good heart."

"Does he? You really liked him didn't you? A man who could appreciate your talents. A proper master for a..." I stop myself, then say more calmly. "A proper master for you."

"You are my master!" She says vehemently then shakes her head again as she mutters. "You jealous fool."

"Jealous!?" I exclaim. "I wasn't jealous! Why would I be jealous?"

Ignoring the question she walks back and picks up the amphora by the handles. Then, as I had previously, she turns and starts off down the road without me. She only gets a few steps away before she stops to wait for me. I walk up beside her and look down. Her eyes remain straight ahead.

"I am sorry I upset you Master." Her voice is flat and lifeless.

"Rosa."

"We should be moving." She says in that same dead tone. "Master is in a hurry."

I let out a sigh. "Fine." I reach to take the clay jug but her hands grip tighter onto the two handles. I give it a tug but obstinately she holds it with all of her strength. I wasn't about to fight her about it. I start South with Rosa at my side again, but this time a step behind as well.

In the blazing heat we walk in silence. We stop at a public well to take refreshment, refill the waterskin, and have a rest. I didn't wish to stop but even I had my limits. For her part Rosa didn't seem bothered by the heat, she was barely sweating and her pale bare arms and legs didn't show a sign of burning or tanning, but the long hours of hiking was not something she was accustomed to. Despite the group of about a dozen others here my previously ebullient traveling companion remains stolid and silent, never leaving my side but never engaging me in conversation. As sun the dips lower and the temperature at last begins to dip we start out again to get some more miles walked before darkness fell. Even if they weren't quite honest I missed her cheerful words and attitude.

As the evening wears on Rosa tries her best to keep up but her strength was flagging. Her steps slow, the amphora is carried lower and lower, and her head and shoulders sag from fatigue. Eventually I stop. She shuffles to a stop beside me, not looking up. I rearrange my pack to the front, reaching over I take the container from my slave. She doesn't resist this time. I kneel down beside.

She stands still a moment before coming around to climb up onto my back again. Worn down by the day she hadn't the energy to resist. She wraps her arms around my chest and her legs around my waist and I stand then carry on walking. I could smell her again. Feel her again. Somewhere back on the road during those hours of tense silence I had left all of my anger.

"I'm sorry." I say. "I'm sorry I called you a liar. That wasn't fair. I'm...not so smart sometimes."

Her arms tight around me in what I realize is a hug. "You are smarter than you think Master." She says, thankfully with real emotion in her soft voice once more. "Pride is your Achilles heel, not intelligence."

"I didn't like how he talked to you. I didn't...like...seeing you with him. I didn't like seeing you serve another."

"I know." She whispers soothingly, her hand petting my chest. "Now we know that and we won't let it happen again. Will we?"

"Mmm. No, we won't."

"We're learning Master, together. It will take time."

"Rosa. I won't abandon you."

She rests her head against mine. "I know."

We walk on in silence for a time. I feel her horn rest against my cheek and welcome it. "Tomorrow...tomorrow we won't travel so hard. We don't need to be in such a hurry."

She lets out a soft sigh and clings tight. "Thank you Master. I wasn't sure how much longer I could keep up this pace. I've never walked so much in my life. I swear you must be descended from Hercules to keep going like you do."

"Rosa?"

"Yes Master?"

"Do you...actually like me? I mean...had I not bought you...if we just met on the street or...in Alexandria. Would you have even talked to me?"

She chuckles lightly. "Yes Master, I like you."

Obviously she couldn't have answered in any other way but I choose to believe her. Those knots inside of me start to unwind. Despite the long day and the heavy load I carried I walk on with a renewed spirit. Rosa yawns and sighs but she stays awake this time. Luck is with us as darkness nears. I spot an empty stable space on a small farm just off the main road. Setting Rosa down we walk in and greet the farm family. After giving us a good once over, already knowing why we were here at this time of night, they tell us we were welcome to the stable for the night before we even had to ask. We thank them profusely and retire to the open wooden structure.

With a mule as our neighbor we arrange the hay out on the floor and Rosa flops down onto it floor in exhaustion.

She stretches out and smiles wide as she lets her whole body relax. "Ohhhh. My aching feet."

I sit down by her legs. "Blisters? We have an ointment."

"I don't blister." She says. "Just throbbing and sore. By the gods that was a long day." She bends her lithe body and shifts to the right then places her aching feet up on my thigh.

I raise an eyebrow and look at her warily.

She gazes back at me with wide soulful eyes, her violet hair spread out around her face like a halo among the hay. In the dim gloam her fair skin made her glow like an angel despite the demon horns on her head. "Rub my feet Master? Please?"

"Me? R-rub your feet?" I say in a wavering tone as I look down at her slippered feet. "Y-you've got some nerve for a slave."

"Nobody can see us." She whispers. Her gaze becomes more focused, more pointed, and she says again. "Rub my feet."

***

Chapter 11

Such impudence! As the master I ought to have been the one asking for a massage. Yet...she had done so well today and bore the long march so bravely. I was really proud of her. She was tired and sore and she deserved a little care. Couldn't a master reward their servant? That wasn't so strange, was it? Back home I would give our old horse a good brush down after a job well done. This wasn't so different, was it? And Rosa was no animal. She might be a slave but she still had a right to be treated as a human being. These are things I think...though the shameful truth was I wished to do it. Especially after being told to.

Cradling her right foot in my hands I look down at the crude slipper, a bit of rough leather held together by twine, made elegant because it was on her. I run my thumb along the skin of her slender ankle and whisper. "So soft."

Rosa smiles and watches but doesn't say anything. I try three times to look at her but each time my eyes retreat back to her foot after just a quick glance. She was so pretty laying there relaxed. Her arms flopped out at her sides, head pillowed by a pile of hay, and her feet up on my leg. Even in that wondrous city of Alexandria she must have been the most beautiful meretrix around. Out on the road it was easy to forget just how lovely she really was. I don't mean to look but from my angle I catch a peek up her tunic and see the bulge of her Amazon heritage. Blushing furiously I refocus completely on the feet on my lap.

I untie the short lace that helped support her slipper around her ankle. I pull it from her foot and take a quick look at the scuffed sole.

"They're holding up pretty good." I say, trying in vain to keep this casual like how we talked during the day.

"Shhh." She hushes me. I look back to her face to see her eyelids blink slowly and heavily. "No more talk today."

"Okay." I nod. "I'll be quiet."

I do the same with the other shoe and place them to the side. Her bare tootsies are as cute as the rest of her. To my surprise her feet did not smell that bad after such a trek, likely to do with how little she sweats. I take in a breath and gather my courage, and it was definitely courage I was summoning here. With both hands I very gently encompass the right one. The pale dainty foot nearly disappears in my large tanned hands. Bracing my fingers on the top of her foot I dig my thumbs into the supple flesh of her sole.

"Ooo!" She jolts. "Not so hard. I'm delicate."

"Sorry!" I ease up immediately and caress the top of her foot in apology. Gauging my power more carefully I start again, applying pressure and pushing my thumbs from her heel up to the pad.

"Ohhhhh!" Her eyes roll back as she melts back into the hay.

Right away I feel subtle spongy pads just beneath the skin not too dissimilar to the feel of a cat's paw. As she wiggles her adorable toes I notice they are much more dexterous than mine. I go again, rubbing from bottom to top in a firm smooth stroke.

"Ohhhhh."

Hearing her moan with pleasure, pleasure I was giving her, fills me with...new feelings. Deeply gratifying new feelings. As good as this felt for her I swear it did even more for me. I was sexually aroused, very much so, but it went so far beyond that. Attending to Rosa brought both joy and peace into my heart. I take time and massage the base of her toes before sliding my thumbs up her sole once again.

"Oh Quin." She sighs happily and half asleep. "That feels soooo good."

I didn't dare correct her on using my name despite my orders not to. She told me no more talk today and I didn't want to bother her. Besides, I had been silly and rash when I gave her that command. Closing her eyes she snuggles down into the dry hay and lets me make her feel good. I rub and knead and press in all the ways I imagined would feel nice. Her ankles, her heel, her silky soft arch, the ball of her foot and the top, along with each individual toe. Each part is given my entire attention for a time. I wanted to touch more, I wanted to touch so much more, but I didn't have permission. By her light cooing I knew I was doing well and it made me feel wonderful inside. I wasn't a masseuse but what I lacked in training I made up for in thoroughness and eagerness. With her not watching me anymore it gave me the bravery to gaze upon her as I rubbed her foot so that I could see her joy as best I could in the growing darkness as well as hear it.

By her calm still and deepening breath I could tell that she was succumbing to Somnus' nocturnal enchantment. I switch to her other foot so that she could feel the pains of that one be relieved as well before nodding away.

"Mmmm." In a hushed hazy voice more asleep than awake she whispers. "Good boy. Gooood boyyyy."

It is the last thing she says before drifting off into her slumber.

I sit there for a time just watching and listening and hopelessly trying to make sense of everything I was feeling. She called me a boy again. Is that how she thought of me? As a mere child? That didn't seem to be the tone of it, it seemed more a term of endearment than derogatory, but I couldn't be sure. She was much older than me after all. I hoped and prayed that she saw me as a man. Only time would tell.

Very gently I lift her feet, slide out from under them, then let them down to the ground as soft as a feather. I wring my hands, nervous at what I was about to do. I poke my head up to look around the dark quiet farmyard. Nothing stirred except the light breeze. Even our neighbor the mule had fallen asleep. Getting on my hands and knees I kneel down at my slumbering slave's side...I lean forward to bow low like I imagined doing this morning...and I kiss the top her soft delicate foot. I linger there reveling in my beggarly genuflection, my lips just barely touching her skin, for as long as I dare.

Getting up I feel ashamed but relieved I was finally able to do it. It had been playing on my thoughts all day long. As hard as I could ever remember it my manhood ached with suppressed potency. I consider sneaking away to relieve my passions. Given the intensity of my lust it would take but a short time to get myself off. But...I didn't want to leave. As quietly as I could I pull my blanket from the pack and lightly drape it over my slave's petite form.

"Mmm." She stirs but does not wake.

With neither my cloak nor my blanket I arrange my tunic as best I could and curl up in the hay across the stable from my slave. To my surprise sleep comes swiftly.

To be continued...