What motivations got them here exactly? What motivated Chrysanthemum to bring her old friend from the literal brink of death? She had a soft spot for Tses; she always did. Was she always meant to be a plaything to have her fun with, or did she need someone to sate a loneliness she was unaware of? She had no clue Tses would be such a good submissive, but she knew she liked Tses, so she was just happy to have her back.

Now that the lovely blonde was part of her life again, even Chrysanthemum was surprised by how much she was sharing with her new companion. She could have kept Tses at the apartment leashed to the bed and her pet probably would have accepted that. Instead, she was becoming a genuine part of Chrys’s life, infiltrating her affairs, personally and professionally.

Tses was getting the hang of her role at Atlantis, becoming one of the gatekeepers for The Syndicate. She was also keeping her schedule open for social engagements where Chrys might need a woman on her arm. Maybe it was a risk being so public with someone she was using to front her criminal organization, but it felt right having Tses be the one she brought to keep her company.

Today, Chrys found herself in need of a personal assistant. Payton, the girl who performed the role, was very under the weather and Chrys convinced her to stay home for the week. She did not need an assistant who was going to be working through a mental fog while dragging a disease fog around with her.

Enter Tses! Some tasks were being passed along to her executive assistant, but Chrys wanted someone around to manage her calendar and alert her to email and phone messages as they came in. It was particularly beneficial if they knew about The Syndicate and could carefully relay notifications related to that enterprise.

Tses could handle these tasks, but more importantly, it gave Chrys an excuse to keep Tses around with her during the day at Van Hart Enterprises. It also came with the ability to dress Tses up, and that was one of Chrys’s favorite pastimes. For an assistant in an office setting, she chose a black pencil skirt that went down to Tses’s knees, opaque black hose, and a light blue button-down blouse.

With a doorman leading them through the glass door of Van Hart Tower, Chrys resisted the urge to keep her hand at the small of Tses’s back. This was her domain as an executive and she had to be professional. Sure, Tses was not about to go to HR, but she had an image to maintain. She did gesture to the handbag that kept the devices Tses would be managing. ”Okay, so the red mobile should have my work emails and phone calls routed to it, and will alert you for any upcoming work calendar events. The blue phone will do the same for personal notifications. The silver one is for our extracurriculars.” That, it went without saying, was The Syndicate Phone and was not registered to her.

Of course, Tses was still learning, not just her role as an assistant, but something more basic that she was still self-conscious of: reading. ”How have your lessons been going, dearest? If necessary, you should be able to use the text-to-speech functions on the phones. It’ll play through your earpiece, and it’s understandable if some of what you get today is a little overwhelming.” She did not want Tses feeling like she was too stupid to do something, because nothing could be further from the truth. She was getting a late start, but Tses was remarkably competent. It was what made her such a good right hand.

Well, one of the many things on that list, she was finding.

Tses was trying very hard to maintain her composure, but she was a little stressed following Chrys to work.

The outfit wasn't outrageous, but she had to practice walking in it around the penthouse for a bit to feel like she could handle the difference in style. Trying to walk in skirts was something she had to relearn a bit in recent adventures. With her old attire, she wore shorts under her skirt, so the general manners of keeping her legs closed and walking with smaller steps were not so important. In many ways, she had an almost careless way of movement, much different from the reserved steps she had been practicing.

The bag was new. Actually, holding any handbag was a bit of a change for Tses. She never needed a purse before, most of her outfits had pockets on them, and she stole so she never needed money. And there were the phones. Message to be handled, routed, sent to Chrys.

The idea of so much responsibility may have made her panic before, but she was settling into her role with Chyrs well. She wanted to do well. She wanted to make Chrys happy. That made her feel happy herself. "The lessons are going well. I have picked up more than I expected over the years, I feel like I was missing the basics more than anything. I believe I can manage fine." Tses knew Chrys gave her challenges, but rarely was it something that could risk horrible failure. Tses could sound out words much more readily, and if she could do that, she was smart enough to figure out the words. Writing, she would need more practice. But at least it was a start.

Chrysanthemum wanted to call Tses adorable, but she was not sure how that would land. Sure, Chrys often “patronized” Tses, but that was all power dynamic play and right now, Tses was out of her element. She was taking on a lot of challenges, so it made sense. She just happened to look sort of adorable when she was focused on doing her job right. Chrys loved how eager to please she could be.

She was putting in the effort. The way she walked was not natural for her, but she was able to keep up with Chrys’s brisk pace through the office, even in her skirt and heels.Honestly, Chrys kept finding herself proud of the progress Tses was making across the board. She had subordinates and submissives beforem, and she could not think of one as devoted and driven as her precious moonstone.

If she did not believe that, she would not have given Tses a role like this that involved a fair bit of reading, regardless of tech aids. ”Oh darling, I am not surprised you’ve made such progress.” She had to keep affection to a minimum in her office building, but she did reach back to caress Tses’s cheek. ”Of all the pet projects I’ve ever had, I’m not sure any measured up to you.” Maybe she was getting better at what she did, but she thought more of it was Tses being wonderful. It made it hard for her to imagine what her next pet project would be like.

Or would she have a next one at all?

As they approached the lobby desk, the young redhead stood from her seat, exuding bubbly energy when she saw the CEO approaching. “Miss Van Hart! I just finished sending your personal assistant an email, but Coastal Cargo had their flight delayed, pushing that Eleven AM to One PM.”

Sure enough, Chrysanthemum could hear the vibrating from one of Tses’s phones, which was met with a perplexed look from the executive assistant. “New personal assistant, ma’am?”

”Something like that,” she replied, smirking to herself. ”Thank you for being on top of things, Elizabeth.”

The redhead beamed at the praise and bowed her head. “Thank you, ma’am!”

Chrys placed a hand on Tses’s shoulder and moved her forward for a proper introduction. ”Tses will be filling in for Payton while she’s on a brief leave.” Chrys’s other hand found a place to rest atop the hand Elizabeth left on the desk. ”She is who you will coordinate with when meetings change or my schedule needs shifting. I trust you can both play nice?”

The question was asked in a playful way, perhaps less professional than how some subordinates would be spoken with. Elizabeth was used to this, though not as used to it as Tses, but her reply of, “Of course, always ma’am,” was almost purred proudly.

The touch was small, but enough for Tses to feel rewarded. For someone who hated physical affection, Chrys had turned it around in her mind to be something she wanted. Here she was in heels and this silly skirt, but she was trying, she was doing her best to be something better. The doubt lingered in her head that she would not be enough, that she would be abandoned again. It was what kept her learning to read, trying to make sense of all these phones and tasks. She could still feel the darkness that absorbed her once. She didn't want to go back. She wouldn't go back.

I'm not sure any measured up to you

What if they did? Would she be just a forgotten toy then?

The doubt kept eating as they approached the front desk and Tses caught sight of the redhead. Her temper bristled slightly, and her jaw clenched as she watched the exchange between Chrys and the girl. This... this was fine, this was work, she didn't need to feel worried. But, hearing praise given to someone else cut, and Tses felt like a rope was wrapping around her lungs.

The feeling magnified when Chrys touched the other woman's hand. She didn't like that. A territorial snake rose up inside her, wrapping around and around her spine, her stomach, her throat until it seemed to settle with a painful clamp inside her. You'll be forgotten. You won't be enough. She gives praise so easily. You won't be enough.

She almost couldn't feel the hand on her own shoulder, the spike of jealousy hard to shake. Play nice? Could she play nice. Tses gave a small nod. "I will do what is needed." Her words sounded a little flatter than normal. This was just another challenge, and she would have to meet it somehow.

Pet projects were fun, and Tses was admittedly not Chrysanthemum’s first. It was a learning process, and with how unstable she was as a young woman… well, she was not the best pet owner early on. Learning process. After some intensive therapy, her next attempts were safer; if she claimed ownership of someone, she should treat them with care and reverence.

She had playthings and long-term pets, but Tses was becoming a new stage of the process. Tses was living with Chrysanthemum full-time and being allowed in so many corners of her life. She made promises to Tses on a whim when this all started, but the way their partnership was evolving was still something Chrys had to figure out herself. It was an element she was not fully in control of, and she wanted to find the control.

Tses was dutiful as ever, but her affirmation lacked the enthusiasm Chrys expected when she was given tasks. She made a mental note, but moved on to thanking Elizabeth and asking her to send up her first meeting in ten minutes to allow the CEO and her assistant to get settled in.

Stepping into a private elevator, she murmured, ”Floor Seventy-Two,” to Tses, confident she would accept it as an order. Her morning exercise woke her up, but she was still gathering her energy for the day. When the doors closed, she decided to give herself a way to gather up some playful energy by pressing a hand between Tses’s shoulder blades to push her against the metal doors.

Leaning herself against Tses’s body, she nipped at Tses’s neck to establish their connection. She carefully ran fingers into Tses’s hair, careful not to mess it up before their business for the day. ”You know, you have beautiful blonde hair. I wonder how you would wear red, though? A shade like Elizabeth, maybe.” Who did not like a good strawberry blonde?

Though in her head, it was hard to picture. A hand slipped into a garment it should not explore during business hours, though she was just peeking it in, aware the elevator doors could open before the top floor. ”That would just be a passing fancy, though… I love your blonde hair too much. It suits you too well.” She sighed, pulling herself away as the elevator passed through the sixties. This elevator was too fast, she decided. ”Maybe a temporary dye; wouldn’t want to damage those lovely locks. Or I could just find us a nice redhead to play with.”

The door slid open and Chrysanthemum led them into her large penthouse office, feeling the frisky energy she was looking for. ”I’m sure Elizabeth could free herself up one night, come to think of it. Speaking of, has she sent you who is coming in as my first meeting?”

Tses was silent as they finally left the obnoxious front desk woman and stepped into the elevator. Tses was still mentally torn after seeing Chrysanthemum with her subordinate. Was Tses really just like all of the others? No, she lived with Chrys. She wanted to think there was something more there. Her mind was torn from it's thoughts by the contact from the woman behind her, and she made a very not-work-appropriate moan at the physical contact. Her brain got fuzzy, distracted by the sudden heightened sensations. She was enjoying the contact enough she almost missed what was being said.

Then the name got dropped and it was a sour taste in her mouth. Like Elizabeth...

Oh, so Chrys wanted her to be like Elizabeth, enough she would change Tses' hair?! Her brain did a dance between rage and excitement, she was being complimented and insulted at the same time. This was different though. Tses and Chrys had their own games they played, but she was always very aware of her position in those. Right now, it was like being put down when Chrys thought she was still praising. Tses did no like that, and her jaw clenched as Chrys pulled away.

She was horrible with words, terrible at saying how she truly felt about things. But eventually, this situation would unravel if the jealous snake in her stomach was given much more ammunition. She did not like sharing Chrys, she did not like seeing the other woman dote on someone, and then compare Tses to them. Was Tses not good enough? Replaceable. More than replaceable. What if she was already a passing distraction ready to be thrown aside?

She just had to do the job right. She needed to show she could handle this, maintain her position in this relationship. Relationship? Tses realized she hadn't said much and quickly looked up the contact that was mentioned. "Your next meeting is Vivien Vale of Vale Pharmaceuticals." Tses said as professionally as she could manage. She had to casually tug her shirt to straighten it out, touching a stray hair and biting her lip. Then she stopped. She wouldn't comment. It was just a passing incident. She could handle this.

When the other woman finally arrived, however, all that rage came bubbling back to the surface. It was worse. She could barely focus on what was being said, little flickers of green light painting her nails, trailing up her arms.

Maybe she should have said something when she had the chance.

Chrysanthemum did not see the issue with discussing her sexual appetites or potential conquests. Tses understood that Chrys took sexual partners outside of their arrangement. She had a strong appetite, and while Tses was always willing to serve her, Chrys also understood that her sexual desires were not as “always on” as her mistress. Chrys was always going to keep finding prey for herself because she enjoyed the hunt, but that dynamic also impacted how and when she made these decisions.

Now that Tses was getting settled into Atlantis, Chrys was considering using her position as an opportunity to train her as a lure. Tses was a lovely woman, whether she believed it or not. With the right training, Chrys was sure she could lure some exciting new playthings for her mistress. Who better to teach her than Chrysanthemum herself?

”Viv? Oh, that’s quite the treat,” she purred enthusiastically, getting her files squared away.

Prompt as ever, the door opened shortly thereafter and a tall, leggy woman with flawless olive skin and sleek black hair entered. “Miss Van Hart, it’s been too long.”

Chrys’s smile was predatory. ”Clearly why I scheduled a meeting. Why not negotiate a few million dollars of business dealings to get you to visit.” The shook hands, because this was business and they both knew to behave for their business proceedings.

And the business portion of their meeting went smoothly. Miss Vale was a very accomodating business partner. She knew to let Chrysanthemum take the lead in negotiations and her terms were always generous. Of course they were; she knew it would make Chrys pleased.

And when business started to conclude, postures around the table relaxed. Chrys reached toward that narrow neck, her finger tugging on a choker Vivien wore. ”I approve of your choice in businesswear today, dear.”

The CEO beamed like a puppy being praised. “Of course, Mistress. It felt… appropriate.”

Chrysanthemum turned to her pet, ready to explain her past with Vivien. Taking the girl from a business conference and breaking her. Training her and making her a loyal and well-behaved companion for a time.

Except the mistress noticed the sparks. Barely distinguishable green light flickering. Chrysanthemum frowned, because Tses had control over her powers. This was distressing. ”Vivien, I don’t wish to rush you out, but I have some business to attend to with my precious… assistant.” The tone was clear; she might as well have said pet.

Vivien was disappointed, pouting at the early dismissal, but she was too well-trained to argue. “I… of course, Mistr-- Miss Van Hart.”

They stood from the table and Chrys gave a polite kiss on the cheek. Vivien was a former pet, but she did want to keep the woman happy and attended to. ”Brunch. Soon. Perhaps even dessert,” she murmured, which lifted Vivien’s spirits.

With her business associate and former plaything out of the room, Chrysanthemum could finally shift all her attention back to Tses. Slowly, she approached. ”Are you okay, pet? I know I haven’t been able to give you as much attention as you’d like today, but I’ll certainly make up for it when we get home.” She reached to place a hand on Tses’s cheek. ”I have to keep my precious girl happy, after all.”

Tses was struggling during the meeting. Her mind was racing and she kept seeing the looks being exchanged between the two women. Tses knew Chrys had other playthings. It would be foolish to assume she alone could entertain someone as powerful as Chrys and as...energetic. But Tses was still afraid. She saw the way the other woman interacted, and how pleased Chrys was. Surely someone more powerful would be suited for Chrys? Someone with business sense, someone who could f***ing read. Tses could see a thousand reasons why she was not good enough, and the anxiety was reflecting in her powers. Her anger and fear were overlapping, creating a coil in her chest.

Chrys was coming back to her, and Tses tried to listen to what was being said. Was she okay? She wanted to say yes, but when Chrysanthemum reached out, she reacted without thinking. Her body went to light form, and stopped the contact. It was the first time she had avoided being touched by Chrys, but the fear had gotten too strong. Her arms crossed tightly over her chest, and her eyes blazed, anger trying to cover the fear. "Why don't you go make Elizabeth happy. You wanted me to look more like her anyway," she snarled.

Why did that make her so upset? Was it because they worked together and Chrysanthemum had more time with the red-head? Or that Tses was reminded she wasn't good enough as she was. She needed work. She was a broken toy and how could a broken toy ever entertain Chrys for long when there were so many perfectly ready ones available? Tses shut her eyes, breathing through her nose. There was a flicker in her powers as she forced control again, eyes tight against the sting of tears. Damn it. She was trying to shake loose from the emotions, wishing she could phase them away like she could avoid everything else.

"Replaceable." She wasn't aware she said the word out loud, it was ringing so loudly in her head. She wanted to run. She wanted to escape before the disappointment came.

Of all the subordinates Chrysanthemum had been involved with, Tses had proven to be the most implicitly loyal. Most submissives had roadblocks and limitations that were hard limits, and some just had limits to how much Chrys could share with them. Tses had things that made her uncomfortable and Chrys recognized them, but if Chrys wanted her to do something, Tses would do it without question, almost too willingly.

And now, evidently, they were hitting Tses’s first roadblock, and oh boy, was this one a doozy.

Chrysanthemum did not notice jealousy unless people were jealous of her, because that just fueled her ego and was therefore valuable. She was all but blind to the jealousy her pet felt toward other women Chrys surrounded herself with, but hindsight was suddenly reflecting those signs in her head.

Despite her effort to touch Tses as she had hundreds of times before, Chrys’s hand passed through the woman standing as moonlight before her. This was troubling. The way she spoke Elizabeth’s name spoke volumes. It also perplexed Chrys, who thought she had been clear about her daliances. ”Tses… I didn’t mean it that way. I wanted to play dress-up with you,” she said, trying to keep it light, but her effort was half-hearted and weak. ”Doll things, like we always do.”

Furrowing her brow, Chrys tried to figure out the problem here. ”I.. I don’t know the right thing to say here,” she admitted, which was rare for her. ”I’ve always been honest that I’ve been involved with people in the past. That I’ll play with people now. I try… I want to be truthful with you.”

The flickering woman finally let a word slip that clarified the picture. Replaceable. That was the problem. Not that Chrys had a history filled with lovers. It was that she had a history of women where she had been. And they were not there now. Chrys bit her lip, unsure of how to approach that reasoning. ”Is… is that it? You’re seeing pets I’ve kept before. You’re worried. You think one day I’ll release you to be on your own again?”

Tses tried to listen, but her mind had hit a rut and it felt broken now. She just kept remembering the darkness, the emptiness, the pain. She was standing there, glowing moonlight, desperately wanting contact and truly terrified by it.

Dress up. Chrys just wanted to play dress up. The comment was so innocent Tses almost felt ashamed for how she was feeling.

Tses looked up, and the rage in her eyes had settled some. Now there was just fear.

"What if I am not entertaining enough for you? What if I'm not a good pet? You can find someone else, and if you do, I have nowhere to go," Tses whispered. She shivered slightly, looking down at her hands and the green light, watching her body move from solid and back again with her emotions. "I don't have a home, I don't have an identity. You can find another pet, you can replace me. But I don't want to be let go."

As she said it, she forced her body to solidify. She needed contact, she wanted contact. She was fighting her own mind against the emotions that had disturbed them. "You can have other playthings. Just don't get rid of me. If I have to find them for you, or help, or watch, I don't care. I just...I don't want to go back to the darkness again."

If one of her previous pets had thrown a tantrum and took issue with her relationships with other women, Chrys would have been firm. She would remind Viv to learn her place constantly. As a CEO used to being in control herself, she made a habit of being uppity. Chrys was also learning to respect her sub’s feelings and limitations back then as well. She might have broken Viv a little too well, honestly.

Experience taught her to be more empathetic, but that was not what she was feeling with Tses. Rather than wanting to take a firm, authoritative hand in this conflict, Chrys was softening. She was worried, not that Tses would leave; the blonde made it clear she never planned to leave. Chrys was just concerned she had hurt Tses. The desperation in Tses’s voice did nothing but sadden the Mistress.

After letting her pet-- her friend-- her lover get her feelings off her chest, Chrys waited until Tses settled back to a solid form, no longer flickering. The moment she could, she wrapped her arms tightly around the woman she had at her beck and call for months now. ”Oh Tses… I’m sorry. I should have said this sooner. Yes, you’re my pet and my doll and my plaything and you do all of that wonderfully. And yes… other girls have done all that for me, too.”

Chrys rested a soft kiss on Tses’s forehead. ”You’re not just a curiosity like my other pets. You’re my friend. You’re… you’re more, okay?” she admitted very quietly. ”I value you. You’re the one I can let into all the spaces in my life. That’s not something I’ve just let my pets do.”

Steadying her breath, one arm left Tses’s waist so she could raise the blonde’s chin in her hand. She captured Tses’s gaze. ”You… matter. Not just as my pet. As my Tses. No pet or plaything can replace my Tses because she’s irreplaceable.”

Tses felt her muscles relax as the kiss settled onto her forehead. What activated Chrys' powers was more than that this time. It was a reassurance that Tses was not abandoned, she was wanted. She had something to offer and appreciate. Years of feeling worthless had traumatized the will-o'-the-wisp to the point even the outfit's she wore reflected her lack of self-value. Chrys had a toy, but it was broken, and time was needed to keep repairing her so she could be better.

Tses found herself looking into Chrys' gaze, and knew the sentiments were genuine. Her body relaxed, and she felt the last traces of anxiety fading. She pressed her face against Chrys' hand like a cat, holding onto the touch for a moment.

"I'm sorry," she remarked finally. "I didn't mean to misbehave. I just... I'm learning." Hell she was learning so much. Reading and numbers, how to do business and relationships at the same time. She had the first moment to really feel exhausted by it all. While she was used to sharing the more pleasant sensations with Chrys she wondered if the opposite was true. The feeling of tired muscles from learning to wear shoes and outfits she wasn't used to, and the ache in her jaw from clenching her teeth so tight.

This was a new moment for Chrysanthemum. She was not what one might call an emotionally available individual. Being emotionally vulnerable was more frightening than being physically vulnerable. She could turn pain onto someone, but how did she equalize leaving her feelings exposed? If this were anyone else, she would not think about it, but Tses was already exposed. She had nothing left to hide from Chrys, and something about that forced the Mistress to confront what she was holding back.

She could feel the physical tension Tses was holding, from her jaw to her feet. They would get her accustomed to those shoes eventually. The rest, Chrys had to do something about. "You misbehaved because I wasn't doing my job right. Not as your Mistress. Not as your lover." It was on her that Tses's self-consciousness grew rampantly as she worried about her place. She worried Chrys saw her as expendable, while the opposite could not be less true.

Chrys wrapped Tses up in a hug, feeling her own arms around her own shoulders. "There may be other pets. I can't promise there won't be. What I can say... is if you want to be my girlfriend, that can be a spot just for you?" Chrys laughed at the words escaping her, wondering where she even found them. "Trust me, I'm not in the business of cliche lines like that. I'm making you a special case, Tsesy."

The hug took a moment for Tses to respond to, body slowly relaxing into the touch. She let her head find a spot between Chry's shoulder and neck, and blinked at surprise when she heard what Chrys was saying. Girlfriend? It did not escape her what a step that was for Chrys to offer. The other woman was secretive and reserved, to actually label them was it's own offering.

Tses pulled away and let herself smile, then risk pressing a kiss to Chrys' cheek. "I...I would like that. I will find a way to get better at this....not just the business part, but...the rest." She looked at her hands, running a finger across one of her scars. Then she paused, and glanced up for a clock.

"Your next meeting...I think we ran this one late now. I'm sorry," she reached for her bag and scooped out a phone, checking the rest of their timeline. "I can move it back, and this one had a break, so it'll be more rushed but we can make it work...." she got several messages from Elizabeth checking whether they were ready. She rubbed her forehead, feeling the double sensation now that she shared it with Chrys. She needed to get her mind back in order if they were going to finish this day better than it had begun.

Chrysanthemum was not known for emotional availability and Tses knew that. They were in the same place now; two women wanting to be better for each other. ”We’ll keep working on all of this, pet. We’re both in new territory, right? Let’s just… figure it out together. No pressure.” They would make mistakes; no reason to punish themselves. Well, playful punishment aside, of course.

Now that they had settled things back down and the next meeting was not with someone Chrysanthemum used to sleep with, they could get back into their work day. ”I’m confident that you and Elizabeth can move people around as necessary. The beauty of being the woman in charge is people getting in line with my schedule. If I want to take an extra fifteen minutes alone with my pet, everyone will adjust accordingly.”

Smiling, Chrys kissed Tses’s cheek, feeling the slightly muted sensation. She admired the blonde for a moment before following up with a kiss on Tses’s slender neck, just above the choker she had Tses wear. ”Actually… that doesn’t sound like a bad idea,” she murmured, guiding Tses back toward her desk. ”Can you move my meeting back like you said and let Lizzy know I have a call to take?”