Author's Note: Thanks for reading the continuation of "The Master and Maid". I must say that I am astonished and amazed at the reception that I received for the first chapter. You guys and gals make me glad that I decided to write for Lit again. Another big shout out to hentaikitten for continuing to work with me on editing my story and agreeing to continue to be my editor. There will be a small break in between this chapter and the next, however, as she's taking some personal time but I will be writing while she's out and will have another chapter ready for her to edit when she comes back.
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Waking, Fiora stretched lazily on the bed. Her toes curled as she quivered, the last remnants of sleep leaving her body. She rolled out of bed and landed quietly on her feet. Moving to the closet, she selected today's clothes from the myriad her new master had purchased for her. Having dressed, she opened her door and strode out to start her day's work.
It had been two months since the new human had bought her from her former master and she found that she enjoyed the life she had now settled into with her new master, Kyle. She smiled as she passed his door. He would be up soon and she planned on having breakfast ready for him when he came down for his morning coffee.
She wrinkled her nose as the strange excitement washed over her. What am I feeling? She thought. She noticed that, lately, she had started to become happy to see Kyle. She had to constantly remind herself that while Kyle was a kind human, he was still her owner and she was still a slave. She continued down the stairs, having forgotten the events of the previous night.
The kitchen was as it had been left when she had gone up to bed. Dishes were smashed on the floor at various places around the expansive kitchen. The dish rack that had rested beside the sink was on the far side of the room, a small hole in the wall from where she'd thrown it. Small spots of blood dotted the floor, leading from over by the sink towards the stairs.
She'd had an argument with Kyle the night before, having dropped a plate as she'd attempted to place it in the dish drain. Kyle's head had snapped up upon hearing the sound, startled from the attention he'd previously had on his cell phone screen. She'd dropped dishes before with her old master and her ears flattened back against her head as she awaited the scolding Kyle was sure to give her for ruining a dish.
He hadn't scolded her though. Instead, he had walked over and checked on her hands. Seeing that she wasn't hurt, he'd begun cleaning up the broken dish and asked her to grab the broom to clean up the small shards. She'd lost her patience at that point.
"I don't understand you, human!" she'd screamed at him, tears welling in her eyes, "You should yell at me for breaking your things!"
Kyle had stared at her slack-jawed as her frustrations played out.
"You should beat me with a leash! Strike me with your fists! Grab me and have your way with me! Act like a human!"
Her tears were free flowing at that point. She could barely make out Kyle's face in the haze that had sprung up in her eyes. He'd moved close to her and she flinched, thinking that he would make good on her outburst. Instead, he had hugged her close to him and stroked her hair back from her face.
"I could never do that to you, Fiora." He had said, his voice calm as he held her. "That was an accident."
After a pause, he'd added, "You're not my property, Fiora. You're my friend."
Her anger had started to subside, her ears rising slowly and a purr starting deep in her chest. He had felt warm and safe.
The realization of the situation hit her again and she pushed him away from her, clawing as she did. Her claws, not unlike a cat's, sat retracted in her fingers when not in use. Her claws cut cleanly through the cotton shirt he'd worn, raking deep gouges across his chest in the process.
He'd quickly backed away from her then and her frustrations mounted even higher. Screaming in Nekonian, she'd begun trashing the kitchen. Playing out her anger and mounting confusion on the inanimate objects. Kyle had walked away from her, heading upstairs to his room and shutting the door. She had cried and thrown things until weariness overtook her as she made her way upstairs, going to bed herself.
Fiora realized that she was crying again, lost in her memories and quickly composed herself. She was going to do whatever she could to make last night up to Kyle. She began cleaning, making a note to ask him later to go collect new dishes to replace the broken ones.
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