As the last of the rage faded and my heartbeat dropped down to normal, I felt a peculiar sense of peace fall upon me. Post Rage Clarity, maybe. Regardless of its origins, I took advantage of my new-found calm to set Sydney on the right arm rest, before dismissing her to turn to Miranda.
She was there, still, though she looked like she wanted to be anywhere else from the look of overwhelming horror on her face as she started at me. Probably, she was too afraid of what would happen if she ran. Miranda had climbed off my leg at some point, and was crouched down at the farthest corner of the arm rest from me she could get: realistically, that was less than a foot of distance, and still well within my grabbing range, but the thought behind it was clear. She also had managed to tear a hole in her stockings, and that marvelous dress was wrinkled now.
“Miranda.” I said finally. “Come here.”
She hesitated, only to flinch as my voice lashed out. “Now.”
At that, she straightened up, and began to walk towards me, face blank, body trembling, and her arms held around… ah.
Once Miranda drew near enough, I flipped my hand over and held in the air, waist level to her. I waited a second, but she only stared at my hand warily.
“Miranda. It’s time to put your toys away.”
It wasn’t a statement, and it wasn’t an order: it was a command, one that left her no choice but to comply. Unconsciously she reacted to the authority I had put in my voice, body going ramrod straight, before the actual orders I had told her sunk in. That broke her already fraying facade, and she looked at me in shock.
“Ian, I-” She began, but I cut her off before she could continue.
“Either give them up, or it gets worse.” I said implacably, and she bowed before the determination in my words.
Full-out shaking now, Miranda slowly placed her friends into my grasp. I took a moment to consider the scene: Miranda, bent and broken, clothes a mess and eyes bright with tears, and her friends, two tiny and insignificant figures, sat huddled in the palm of my hand.
It felt good, and I savoured that feeling before I continued.
The outstretched hand then became a fist, fingers folding over their victims and trapping them in place. She let out a half hearted cry at that, a “please” that trailed off before she could finish the word, and an outstretched arm that dropped before she could even touch me.
Moments later, she dropped to her knees, while In the darkness of my hand neither of the lesser Mins dared to move.
I let the silence sit briefly before I spoke again. “Good girl.”
Unlike the last time I had said it, Miranda didn’t fight the words, only slumping slightly in shame, even as her cheeks grew pink. I studied the expression briefly before I continued.
“Stay.” And before she could respond, I rose from my chair and walked away, leaving her stranded on the chair.
xxx
Fundamentally, a Min House was nothing more than a doll house taken to it’s logical extremes, in a world where people grew small enough to fit in them: electricity, water, cold storage and functional furniture, everything a Min could need, all presented with the comforting illusion of normality to help shield them from the cold realities of their new lives. At first glance, it resembled nothing more than a normal house, but the more you examined it, the more the abnormalities began to show a far different picture.
There were no doors, inside the house or out, only the rectangular openings where a door would hang. The wall in front protruded several inches over the single entrance inside, and from the middle of the squared off roof rose a handle. The most obvious, and ominous, difference were the three windows: they were massive, compared to the rest of the building, and almost completely replaced the three walls they part of, leaving only the front wall solid.
In truth, the Min House was more like a furnished aquarium than an actual house, and it reflected a simple truth that the Mins probably tried not to think about, even as those lucky enough to live in one were reminded daily.
At the end of the day, Min Houses, like doll houses, were nothing more than toys made for their owners, no matter much they pandered to the toys that lived, or were trapped, inside them. I unlocked mine easily and swung open the outer section on its well concealed hinge, leaving the rest of the house and the base it was built on open for giant hands to easily access.
“Here’s the deal,” I began. “Miranda’s in trouble, and you’re all paying for it. Because of that, I’m confiscating some of the things I’ve been lending you.”
The Min House stood two ‘stories’ high, and was fully furnished with rugs, carpets, chairs and couches. In all honesty, it was probably more luxurious than my house was.
That changed when I began to remove the contents, piece by piece. First the rosewood dining table, with engravings so fine I could barely see them, was set to the side, before I took the rug that had sat under it and place it on top of it. Then the leather (or pleather?) couch was sat next to the table, followed by the plush chair…
By the time I finished, the pile of furniture rose higher than Amber, and both of the Mins were looking inside their barren home with pained expressions. Finally I grabbed the first bed, and held it for a minute before putting it front of my prisoners.
“Here.” They looked at me cautiously, and I elaborated. “Take everything off; sheets, blankets, pillows, the whole lot.”
After they stripping the first bed, I placed the other nine next to it, watching without comment as they reduced each one to nothing more than mattress and frame. Once they finished, I placed the pile of bedding back into the house.
“Good. Next, take care of yourselves.”
There was a moment of stillness, before Mia awkwardly raised her hand. “Do you want a show or…?”
I considered it. Tempting, tempting, but I had things to do. “Not right now, no. Maybe later. Just take the clothes off.”
I watched them as they peeled off their close fitting outfits in a quick, business like fashion. Even without any dramatics, I found myself licking at my lips at the sight of it, and I stepped in as they began to take off their bras.
“Stop.” They froze at my words, staring at me in confused fear before I continued. “Leave those on.”
It was an impulsive comment, but not one I regretted: they looked fantastic in their underwear, and the idea of the two women in their little cage-house, wearing nothing but their underwear at my whim, was an idea I quickly grew fond of.
In fact…
“Put the boots back on.”
High heels were the best heels.
Confiscating their discarded clothes, I dropped them on top of the furniture stack, before turning back to the Mins.
“You two are going to be locked inside until further notice, pending me reaching a new understand with Miranda. I’ll check in on you every once and awhile, and while I wouldn’t mind a show when I do, this really has nothing to do with you. If it goes on long enough, I’ll think about taking you two out to play a bit, maybe with some food, but you won’t see her until we make up. Understood?”
They both curtsied. “Yes Master”, they said in unison. “Thank you, Master.”
I nodded. “Good. Now get inside.”
Obidently, they filled back into their home, making sure to stand far away from the edges as I put the house back together. Once I finished sealing up the Min House, I pressed a button below the handle and watched the front wall fall down, revealing a final window as the ‘door’ disappeared.
I observed for a minute, watching the two of them walking around while trying to ignore my face looming above their windows, before I nodded in satisfaction.
Good. Now for Miranda.
Alright, I’ll admit that Miranda was supposed to be dealt with here, but that little world building session kind of dragged on and this felt like a good place to stop. Next time, I promise.