500 Miles: Hellfire 2
By Princess Alexandria
"You planning a party?" The voice called from the kitchen as Raven was carefully draping a rich burgundy cloth over the bed, setting the scene for the pose Drahke had described to her. Classy and laying down could be done and it would tire her model out less than sitting or standing in a pose for too long.
"Just you." Raven's voice was just a little puzzled, but her focus was more on the art. She could put Drahke and the now more seductive looking bed on the canvas first and maybe go find a more romantic room to paint into the background, because this room wasn't going to fit with the rest of it at all. "Why?" She asked as she fussed with the draping of the cloth, trying to make the shadows more interesting and knowing she'd need to adjust it once her model laid on it.
"No reason." Drahke's voice was softer and Raven glanced at the bedroom door to see the woman leaning against the door watching her, while drinking a wine cooler. Drahke had a silky black dress on and her hair was done with care, she looked classy and while she was wearing a lot more than Raven had ever seen her in, Raven found Drahke sexier that way. Why men didn't appreciate a well dressed woman, why they drooled over the tacky lingerie that the prostitutes wore didn't make sense to Raven. "I just had a selection to pick from." The wine cooler was lifted a little to indicate she was talking about the alcohol.
"I just didn't know what you liked." Raven felt a hint of a blush color her face in embarrassment. "I did a stint as a bartender you know. Just wanted to cover all my bases." Drahke was looking at her a little too carefully and Raven forced her attention back to the work at hand, feeling a little uncomfortable with the fact that the selection in the fridge was actually hers. She needed to drink more to sleep lately, the sounds she would overhear at the brothel mixed with her nightmares to make them more vivid again. "Holding a pose for a while can be a bit uncomfortable. I was thinking of having you on your side and I'll drag the living room pillows out to help prop you up." Raven had never realized how tiring posing for long could be when she used to make Tessa do it daily for her, but Tessa never complained and never seemed to get bored. It wasn't until Raven started having Jean pose for her that she found out that models needed more breaks than she used to give Tessa.
After more fussing and Drahke's amused expression when Raven took it upon herself to adjust Drahke's pose, gently moving a hip back or an arm forward, they were ready to work. "What radio station would you like?" Raven moved to where she'd set up the easel to study the view she had again. Drahke looked more like a very strong woman, her pose showed off her attributes well, and her body language indicated power. It was perfect. Raven's hand itched to grab her supplies and start working, but she had to make sure her model was comfortable. "I'm not the best conversationalist when I'm working." Raven said apologetically.
"Some soft classical would put me in the mood." Drahke's grin was slightly wicked. "I have some CD's in my purse." Drahke seemed to be about to shift.
"No, no don't move. You're perfect, I don't want to have to…" Raven protested quickly.
"Perfect." Drahke smiled. "Well, I wouldn't want to ruin that. You could grab my purse and get them. I forgot about it."
"No problem." Raven found the black clutch purse on her kitchen counter and opened it to find the two CD's practically falling out, they'd been stuffed in when they'd barely fit. She was a little ashamed that she hadn't assumed Drahke would like music like that. A card fell out of the purse as Raven pulled the CD's out and Raven bent down to pick it up.
The tan business card was expensive looking, the bold words Lady Heather's Dominion stared up at Raven, Raven stared harder as she picked it up, taking in the whip used as a line under the title and above the subtitle, A discrete BDSM venue. "Ah." Raven quickly shoved the card back into Drahke's purse and closed it. She took a step towards the fridge for a beer of her own, but had to stop herself. She didn't want to try to do art partly drunk, and while one drink wouldn't do that, she'd probably open another after it. "Shit." She whispered, embarrassed at having seen the card.
"Did you find them?" Drahke yelled out, forcing Raven to start down the hall.
"Yep." Raven didn't look at Drahke as she came into the room, she focused on the stereo, and setting up the music. The soothing sounds helped her calm down. With a forced smile she turned to Drahke. "This will take more than one sitting." More than one day alone together.
"That's fine. I have a night job, so if we did this in the afternoon, before your shift even?" Drahke's face was expressive when she talked, clearly in thought, a little unsure. Raven started to work, placing the bed and the subject on the canvas.
"That's fine." Raven sighed. "What kind of job?" She found herself asking, rather than trying to ignore it and hope it went away.
Drahke was quiet for a moment and Raven could see the woman seeming to hold herself more stiffly. "I work at a club in the city on my off weeks from the Brothel."
Raven found the paints a good excuse to not look at Drahke as she asked questions. She mixed her colors as she spoke. "You already make more in a week than I do in two months."
"I thought you didn't do talking and working very well." Drahke smiled, but Raven got the sense it was fake.
"You better get talking out of your system while you can, when I start doing your face you won't be able to." Raven smiled back.
"Doing my face?" Drahke chuckled, "Honey, we didn't negotiate that. I'm just here for the art." Raven blushed. "So are you really religious, or just believe prostitution is morally wrong?"
"What?" Raven stopped mixing paint and looked up at Drahke. Good move, pulling the conversation away from her second job, but a little too obvious. Raven didn't really want to have this conversation either. "No, I'm not religious." Raven paused as she thought about the other question. "And I'd never really thought about it until I got here." The timing for her stint at the Brothel wasn't the best. She knew she would have seemed more opened minded a year ago. "It isn't like anyone is forcing you to do that."
"I don't have a pimp and never will. I work hard for my money and I'm not sharing it with a man that does nothing more than push me to work more hours and make more money." Drahke's words came a little faster in annoyance. "Why any woman would fall for that trap, I don't get it." Raven focused very hard on her mixing of a nice skin tone for the woman, surprised at the emotion in Drahke's voice about this accidental topic. "I have my own plans for my money, thank you very much."
"Plans?" Raven had been outmaneuvered yet again and the topic of conversation she'd wanted was truly dead now. This was probably another reason she wasn't made a spy. She'd have to wait longer to find out if Drahke was really a Mistress.
"When you drove up to the Brothel, didn't you expect something a little more elegant, like in the movies? A beautiful Victorian house?" Drahke had a very subtle smile as she thought about it and Raven could see a sparkle in her eyes. "Some place that gentleman came for company for the evening, not stinky men that nearly made you gasp for air if you got close to them." Drahke moved a little, as subjects tended to do, but Raven didn't see it ruined the pose too badly. "I want to open a Brothel in a place like that, one that specializes in a certain type of clientele and a specific type of working girl. Specialize enough to charge more, a lot more." Drahke looked at her. "That's why I'm working so hard. I want to run a place like that, do the business end of it all. I'm not going to be working on my back forever you know."
"How are you going to specialize?" Raven asked as she finished mixing her last color of paint.
"Much more exotic girls." Drahke's answer seemed evasive and Raven could have pursued it, but she was ready to paint now.
"Try not to move anymore, I'm ready to paint." Raven picked up her brush and studied Drahke's pose again. "Tell me if you need a break, I sometimes forget to check." Drahke took one deep breath and talking was over as Raven did her best to capture the woman on canvas as quickly as she could. This would take a few days at a couple hours a day, but she needed a good start to work from.
When Drahke left for that night job Raven set up another sitting for that Friday, before she had to go to work. She wanted to get this done for Drahke as quickly as possible, since she didn't know how long she'd be staying in town. As was, she wasn't sure she could finish it before the month was up.
She could have all the models she wanted if she stayed longer. Raven sighed as she sat down on the couch for a moment, before going to clean up the bedroom. It was very tempting to stay now that she had models and art supplies. When she left she'd have to leave the easel and other things behind. Anything she couldn't carry had to stay behind, that was the rules.
…………………..
It was dark when she got home from the Brothel and Raven tossed her purse on the couch as she made her way to the fridge. She'd woken up early, painted Drahke for a few hours, and then put in a full day at the Brothel. Raven thought she might not even have trouble sleeping, or at least not a lot. One deep drink of the beer was all she managed before the phone rang. A quick glance at the hour showed it was after two in the morning. Hopefully it wasn't Irene telling her to run. With that possibility she had to pick it up. "Hello?"
"Oh, thank god you're there." Drahke's voice sounded a little frazzled. "Raven I need a huge favor, my car broke down and I'm stranded at the club."
"The club." Raven repeated stupidly as it sank in that Drahke wanted her to go there. They still hadn't talked about what type of club that was. "Where are you?" Maybe it wasn't the bdsm club, maybe that card was just a coincidence.
"Lady Heather's Dominion." Drahke answered and ruined Raven's little delusion. "Please, I'm not really dressed to take a cab. This had to happen on a day where I didn't have a change of clothes on me. I left my bag at your apartment." Raven glanced around and noticed the bag in question. She'd had to leave while Drahke was getting ready for work and had just asked the woman to lock up.
"Okay, where is it. Give me directions." Raven pulled out some paper and started writing. It was the please that helped her reservations.
It took almost an hour to find the club and it didn't look like a club from the outside, it looked like a mansion. Raven knew it wouldn't have a large sign proclaiming it a BDSM club, the Hellfire club hadn't either. All the decadence and perversion would be hidden in a ordinary, although in this case expensive looking wrapper. With a heavy sigh she grabbed Drahke's bag and change of clothes and stepped out of the car. Her heart was beating a little too fast as she walked across the empty parking lot towards the door, memories of sneaking into a different club haunted her. She'd been following Tessa in at that time, worried about what type of mission would take her lover away from her for years, jealous, stupid, overconfident, she'd walked into Hell willingly, believing she wouldn't get burned.
She pushed the doorbell and stood patiently holding Drahke's bag in front of her. When the door opened to reveal Drahke Raven found herself staring. Leather pants and straps of leather that supposedly served as a top covered Drahke, the woman's hair was up in a ponytail and was held in place by more leather. Not the lace Mistresses that Raven was used to, but the tall heeled shoes were familiar. "Ah…" Raven held out the bag. "I brought your change of clothes." Raven's eyes turned down to stare at Drahke's knees as she held out the bag.
"So this is your artist friend?" Another voice spoke, sounding a bit curious. Raven glanced up to see another leather clad woman standing just behind a puzzled looking Drahke. Drahke finally reached out to take the bag Raven had been holding out.
"Yes, Raven this is Lady Heather, the owner of the club. Lady Heather, this is Raven Johnson." Raven felt a small hint of guilt being introduced with that fake name, but it didn't show.
"It looks as if your training was a little too complete." Lady Heather gave her a small smile. "Slave right?"
A blush came to her face and Raven took in a soft gasp of air as she stared at the ground. Don't look at me like that, Selene's angry yell resounded in her head. Training was far too complete if she couldn't be here a minute before people noticed. "I'm not a slave." Her voice was soft, protesting quietly. She could feel eyes on her and her body shook a little. She was too tired to hide it. "Change so we can go." She looked up at Drahke.
"It's just a half hour to my place."
"Change." Raven's voice was a little harsher. She couldn't drive with a Mistress in the car. Drahke had to leave that here.
"You can use my office to change if you'd like. I'll keep Raven company." Lady Heather spoke softly, but it sounded like a command, and Drahke left Raven alone on the doorstep with this woman. "Come in, it will take her a little while to work her way out of the leather." Raven eyed Lady Heather and took in the change in the woman's stance, the less in control, less intimidating way she held her body as if to say she was no threat.
Raven's ears strained to hear screams or whips in the building as she stepped in, but there was nothing. "We've been closed for over an hour." Lady Heather spoke as she moved to stand beside Raven in the lobby of sorts. The brunette Mistress stared at Raven too hard. "Who hurt you so little one?" Lady Heather asked softly and Raven almost believed she imagined it, but the woman was watching her with a softness in her eyes that took Raven by surprise. "You were a slave, and yet you can barely stand to look at us in our work clothes." It was a comment, not a question.
Raven glanced around the well decorated room, "You have a nice place." She ignored the question. "Classy."
"Do you want to see the rest of it?" Lady Heather asked and Raven tensed up and took a small step toward the front door. "Or perhaps not." Raven noticed that Lady Heather didn't take a step towards her, just stared at her. "You've been in a place like this before, but your Mistress was cruel, very cruel."
"Don't." Raven nervously looked in the direction that Drahke had gone. "Are you a mutant?" The words were a subtle threat, just suggesting someone was a mutant would be bad for business, "You act like you read minds." And yet no one would be able to read hers.
"And you are rather desperate to not talk about this. I understand." Lady Heather just gave her a small smile. "No, I'm not a mutant, just a student of human nature. Your body language screams your story." There was a pause and the tone of Lady Heather's voice changed to a more casual one. "So Drahke tells me you are painting her."
"Yeah." Raven clung onto the more innocent topic. "It's been quite a few months since I've painted so it's taking me longer. She's been really patient about it."
"She also told me that you were going to have to do some creative background work, that you needed a different bedroom to paint in."
"Well, she's trying to go for classy and powerful, and my bedroom is just not there." Raven thought about the books she'd been looking through at the library trying to find something close to what she wanted, even though painting from a picture wasn't as good, she was getting desperate. The subject, being Drahke, was almost complete and she'd need to do the background soon.
"I have a room that might work. It has burgundy in the trim, Drahke told me you were using that color heavily." Raven glanced toward the hallway. "No, while there are rooms here that would work, I was thinking of my guest room. I have my private rooms a little further from the play areas. If you'd like you could come over and look at the room in the daylight and have lunch." Raven hesitated. "And I could see your work. Drahke's been trying to talk me into commissioning something."
"Oh, her taste is beautiful." Drahke's voice interrupted them and Raven noticed the jeans and tshirt with some relief. "One of the rooms here would be so perfect." Well, with her model wanting it, Raven couldn't really refuse to at least look.
"Okay, I'll take a look." She looked back at Lady Heather, "but you don't have to bother with lunch."
"I want to." Lady Heather stood a little taller, the Mistress in her back. Raven just nodded. "Come for Sunday Brunch, that's well before the naughty boys start coming over, it should be more comfortable for you then."
"Yes, Mis… Ma'am." Raven's fist clenched, embarrassed at her slip.
"I'll call the garage in the morning." Drahke moved to the door, kindly ignoring the slip. "Hopefully my car isn't too messed up."
"What did it do?" Raven asked as she moved to follow Drahke out. When Drahke explained the problem Raven glanced at the car in question. "Probably the starter. I could fix that."
"Oh no. You aren't risking your artist's hands now." Lady Heather's voice was a little bit of a surprise. The woman was following them out. "I'll just have Stan take care of it for you Drahke. He owes me, just leave me your keys."
The drive to Drahke's apartment was strangely quiet. Raven could see the woman was deep in thought. "I'll pick you up around ten Sunday." Drahke told her as she was getting out of the car. She looked at Raven a little too long, before saying goodbye.
………………
It was a nice morning, not too hot yet. Raven grabbed a novel and went outside to sit in the small garden the apartment complex had and read. She couldn't sleep anymore and wasn't in the mood to draw or be inside any longer. Maybe later she could look into finding a gym to join. When Irene called her, she was going to say she'd be willing to stay. For her art alone it was worth it.
"Get the hell out of here. Get a job or something. I'm sick and tired of supporting a faggot." The angry voice interrupted her reading and Raven stared over at the first level apartment that was clearly the source of this. "Go peddle your ass on the street for all I care, I just don't want you coming back until you have some job, you hear me you lazy good for nothing bastard. Probably aren't even my son. I wouldn't have a faggot for a son." Raven sat up straighter as she watched the door open. From her spot in the yard they most likely didn't notice her. A light skinned African-American boy, who couldn't be more than fourteen came out, his arms and legs lanky as young teenagers tended to be. He moved quickly away from the apartment, radiating tension and pain. She'd seen that boy around a few times.
When she started back to her apartment ten minutes later, because she couldn't relax when she was hoping to spot the asshole that would treat his son that way, she notice the boy standing in the parking lot. A job? Who would hire a kid that age? Who would suggest this boy sell his body? Raven gripped her book more tightly in her hand and moved to her apartment. Her eyes strayed to the boy again as she closed the door and felt the air conditioning caress her skin. It had started to get too warm outside.
She showered and was dressed and ready to go when Drahke came to get her for that brunch with Lady Heather. Her eyes lingered on the teenager as he walked along the street towards the store.
"My mother kicked me out of the house when she found out things about me she didn't like." She spoke softly as she watched the boy walk in front of them at the stoplight.
"I had a similar problem." Drahke spoke after a moment. "Didn't help that her boyfriend was looking at me like I was on the menu."
"I'd bet you a hundred dollars that boy is gonna be homeless before the end of the summer." Raven sighed as she watched him, remembering her own mother yelling about how her only child was a god damn mutant and a faggot. One wasn't bad enough she had to be both.
"Yeah, my mom's boyfriend sure didn't help the situation either." He'd been a raving anti-mutant, homophobic asshole.
"Did he touch you?" Drahke's fist seemed to clench on the steering wheel harder. Raven turned away from watching her neighbor boy to stare at her.
"No," Raven watched Drahke seem to relax and started to see that the woman did care about her. "But I… I don't have a problem with you being a prostitute, it's just that…" Raven stopped talking, unsure about telling, but hating that Drahke seemed to think Raven was being judgmental, and how she'd treated the woman at that club wasn't good. "I was captured a few months ago, and I just… I just really have a tough time with sex, hearing about it, thinking about it." Drahke's eyes widened and she swerved a little in the lane before covering up her reaction. "I was theirs for a week, and I still can't sleep."
"Oh god Baby." Drahke pulled off the street and into the grocery store parking lot. "Oh Raven." Drahke turned to look at her. "I was afraid it was something like that, but I never thought…"
"They were all so powerful. I… I'm still not safe. I have to run. When the phone rings I worry it's the call that tells me I have to run again."
"The police?"
"You don't report people like this. Rich, powerful people. Telepaths that could make it all go away. There was no way to…" Raven's voice cracked. She moved her hand to press on her forehead, to rub it angrily. "I can't stop them, and the only person I trusted to protect me from shit like that told me to never tell anyone. He was like a fucking dad to me, and he told me…" Her eyes welled up with tears.
Drahke reached out and touched her gently, caressed her arm. "I've got you honey." Drahke pulled Raven into a hug. Raven was horrified that she was breaking down like this. She didn't know Drahke well enough to cry on her, but she did.
Jean would have told her that she must have sensed something she could trust in Drahke. Raven wondered if it was that she just hadn't sleep well for too many nights in a row.
"Do you hate mutants for that?" Drahke asked quietly while holding Raven gently, after the tears had stopped.
"No." Raven chuckled, but it wasn't funny. She looked up at Drahke and watched the woman slowly guess. "My powers are so useless and weak." She waited tensely to be rejected. It was better to find out now, than after she agreed to stay a few more months.
"I breathe fire." Drahke gave her a small smile and glanced around before blowing gently out. A small flame appeared and then disappeared.
Raven stared at where the flame had been for a moment, before focusing on Drahke's face again. Her shoulder's tension eased as she stared at her friend. Mutant, she hadn't seen that one coming. A small chuckled escaped her lips at how she could know someone, start getting closer to someone, and they just didn't know something that important about each other because it was something dangerous to admit to. "I sense death, take in energy from it." They could have known each other for years and never admitted to being mutants if Raven didn't have a way out in case it went bad. "It isn't very useful in a battle, or for self defense." She'd been told that so many times when she was being left behind. Scott was more guilty of that than Ororo, but both leaders obviously thought about it before bringing Raven with them into the field.
A noise drew their attention to the other cars in the parking lot, then Drahke started the car up again. "Heather is still waiting for us. Do you still want to go?" Drahke glanced at her and Raven saw that Drahke would let her out of this if she wanted out.
"She's expecting us." Raven sat up straighter. "I do want to make a good painting for you." She stared into Drahke's eyes, letting her own vulnerability show, and her gratefulness that she could finally let it show. "And I haven't been having a lot of luck finding a background."
The club really did look like a home, one with abundant parking, but a home nonetheless. Drahke pulled in with a casual motion made from doing that here for a while. They didn't park right near the door, it seemed to be Drahke's personal spot they pulled into. "Her private entrance is in the back." Drahke spoke as they started toward the house and Raven felt her lips twitch as she thought about other ways that could be taken, it made her smile just a little.
"Do you go in her private entrance often?" Raven asked with a fake innocent expression, but Drahke didn't seem to catch it.
"Once in a while." Drahke moved to open the gate. "Never for work, but she does invite a few of us to dinner and such once in a while." The dark haired woman held the gate open for Raven. "My family is pretty non-existent now, and she's great about inviting me over for holidays if I'm not working them."
This time when the door opened Raven found herself staring for a different reason. Lady Heather was clearly just Heather now. Her clothing was so ordinary, she looked like any other woman Raven might see at the grocery store in her cut off jeans and t-shirt. "Better?" Lady Heather asked gently and Raven's eyes went to knowing eyes.
"Looking very casual." Drahke answered with a hint of a tease in her voice, making it clear that Heather didn't dress down quite this much often. When Drahke slipped in the door, Raven moved to follow.
She spoke quietly as Drahke moved towards the living room. "Thank you." Raven wasn't so self absorbed to not notice this was a gesture to try and make this visit easier on Raven.
"The bathroom is the third door down the hall." Heather told her and pointed in the direction, "If you want to clean up. You've obviously been crying." Raven sighed and moved to check her reflection. She didn't see it was all that obvious, but this Heather was a lot like Tessa and Tessa would have known. Some people just didn't miss anything, but it was surprising that a human could do that. Tessa's attention to detail was part of her mutation, she saw and remembered everything.
"She was?" The voice was quietly whispered as Raven slowed in the hall on her way back to the others. "I'm surprised she has the courage to come back here. It says a lot about her character that she's doing this for you."
"For me?" Drahke asked and Raven stopped walking altogether.
"Her expression when you told her you liked my home the other night said it all. She's here for you Drahke, facing her fears for you and perhaps her own sense of responsibility because she agreed to paint for you and that's what you wanted, but I had no idea how very well founded her fears were. I'm glad I decided to dress down." Raven walked quietly back down the hall and opened the bathroom door a little more loudly. This time when she came down the hall they were talking about paintings and art.
After a rather healthy lunch, healthier than Raven normally got, they were sitting in the living room again, this time with tea. Raven sat quietly while Drahke told Heather about Raven's odd form of Witness Protection. Neither woman pretended that they hadn't talked about Raven behind her back earlier, and didn't talk in any great detail about her abuse, but the way they talked about her in front of her did remind Raven of other Mistresses she'd known.
"So if it isn't the police protecting you, who is it?" Heather asked Raven and she was sitting a little taller on the couch as she did it.
Raven looked down at her teacup as she considered how to answer this. "A friend." She spoke quietly, realizing that in spite of how she met Irene, she did consider her a friend, not just a previous enemy anymore. She looked up at Drahke and Heather. "I'd tell you more, but the people I'm running from have telepaths."
"Okay, fair enough." Heather nodded a little. "But you trust this friend to be able to keep you safe?"
"Yeah, I do." Sitting here in this living room she found herself trusting Irene even more. The woman pushed Raven into staying here, but sitting there being able to be honest about her life for a change, it was freeing. She didn't have to lie, or if she did she didn't realize it.
"Good, but if you ever don't trust this friend to do that you can come to me," Lady Heather sat her teacup down on the table gently. "I have a few connections, not a lot, but I'd do what I could for you." The woman smiled conspiratorially at her, "And who, knowing what you went through, would think to look for you here?"
Well that was certainly true. Even Tessa would be hard pressed to predict this one. Raven just nodded politely, wondering if she'd ever have to take the woman up on the offer.
"Well, shall I show you the room I was thinking of?" Heather stood up.
It had only taken an hour to get to the reason for this visit. Raven was glad to follow down the hall. "That's Zoe's room." Heather spoke as Raven glanced into a room that didn't look like the others, it had posters on the wall, they were in frames, but they were still posters. "My daughter."
"You have a daughter?" Raven found herself wincing at the obvious surprise in her voice, but Heather just smiled.
"Yes. She's starting High School this year. They grow so fast." Heather moved to open a closed door. "She's staying the weekend at a friend's. Perhaps I'll introduce you to her later, if you paint from here she'll have to meet you." The room was beautiful, and Raven could hear the slight sigh that Drahke gave as she looked at it, clearly liking the idea. "So what do you think?"
Raven stepped into the room and walked around the bed without talking, looking for the angle she had on the other bed in the painting. She studied the dressers, the walls, the windows quietly. "Can I move some furniture?" She asked, seeing a background in her mind that would take a little work to get. "Maybe I could add some candles." She spoke softly to herself. This room could be perfect.
"You can do what you like. If there are things in one of my other rooms you'd like in here just ask."
Raven turned to look at Drahke. "This could work." Part of her had hoped it wouldn't as she was coming here, but after spending an hour with Lady Heather she wasn't as worried about it as she'd been before. Drahke and Heather smiled at her, in that look at the funny little artist way that some of the Xmen had given her before when she was working out a pose or a setting.
"I'd like you to look at another room." Heather interrupted Raven's mental calculations about the guest room and where things should move. "For my painting, I wanted to be in my office, my public office, and I wanted to be in my Mistress attire." There was a hint of a question in that comment.
"That makes sense." Raven turned to look at Heather. She did look more commanding in what Raven had seen her in last time. The thought of her in those clothes didn't bother Raven as much as they had that first night. Perhaps an hour visiting had been needed to make Raven relax, and Lady Heather had of course realized that.
"I'd like to show you what I had in mind, and see what you think." Heather led them out a door and down a larger hall. They past the lobby Raven had seen, they past a few closed doors, which Raven didn't attempt to look in. She was comfortable now, and seeing a whipping post or other familiar things might ruin that. Instead she thought about the artistic qualities and the more feminine touch to the rooms and halls in comparison to another club. She sought out difference, like the fact she could see windows, that getting out at any moment would be easy because even if she couldn't find a door, there were a lot of windows.
Once they got to the office Lady Heather moved toward a chair in the corner instead of her desk. It looked like a favorite reading spot to Raven. Raven studied the way Lady Heather was sitting, took in the office and the dark wood paneling in the background. She stared at the Mistress sitting in an example of the pose she was considering and something wasn't quite right and it wasn't just the casual clothes. It didn't hold enough power even though the chair and the room was perfect, commanding. She moved to the left and moved her head down to take in another angle. "You want this to scream Mistress right?" She asked and shook her head at the amused smirk Heather gave her for that.
"Mistresses don't scream." Drahke chuckled from the doorway. Raven's dark haired friend had been rather quiet until now, and Raven almost forgot that Drahke was with them. Raven glanced at her and then back at Heather. There is no Mistress without a slave.
"Drahke, serve." Raven pointed to the ground in front of Lady Heather. "Kneel for a second."
"You heard the Lady." Lady Heather's eyes hardened just a little, but if she was going for cold and uncaring it was ruined by the smirk as she looked towards Drahke. "On your knees."
"I thought this was a portrait." Drahke complained a little as she stepped into the space Raven pointed too. "I don't want to pose as a slave, hours of that will kill my knees."
"No one does." Raven muttered, thinking about the pictures someone took of her. "Just pose for a second." Her voice was a little deeper as she ordered that, while turning to move behind Drahke as Drahke obeyed. "No, move to the left." When Lady Heather started to move Raven held up a hand, stopping her, while Drahke scooted to the left. "Good." Lady Heather, unfortunately wasn't watching Drahke like Raven intended, she was watching Raven. The way her eyes seemed to take in everything was familiar and a bit comforting.
"She's your slave." Raven stood up a bit taller and waved toward Drahke. "Look at her."
Lady Heather smirked. "You realize you're making me your submissive?"
"Just do what I say." Raven felt a hint of a smile on her own lips at that insane idea.
"Yes Lady Raven." Lady Heather teased softly and turned to stare at Drahke. It took a moment, but what Raven was looking for came out, Lady Heather looked commanding, strong, sexy in a way only a strong woman could be.
"That's it." Raven moved around Drahke, the one spot best for the easel was clearly right behind her. "Drahke you can move now." Raven knew how to recreate that pose now with Heather, the woman just needed a focus to get it started. Whenever they started working it wouldn't be hard to get someone to get Heather in character and focused on a spot near the easel.
"That's perfect." Drahke smiled as she stood up.
"How about you continue that submissive role and go get us some more tea?" Lady Heather smiled at Drahke and the dark haired woman bowed just a little and turned to do what she was told. The way Lady Heather turned to Raven after Drahke was gone made it clear to Raven that the tea was at least partly an excuse to talk to her alone.
"You're different when you're actively being an artist." Lady Heather spoke, "More dominant, confident. You know yourself as an artist in ways you don't know the other parts of yourself. Do you like the control you have right now?"
Raven's eyebrows drew together in a bit of confusion. "I just know how to get the pose I want from you. It's practice."
Lady Heather smiled a little mysteriously. "Yes, you got what you wanted, and you knew how to get it." The woman stood up and turned toward another wall. "Knowing who you are, and what you want are very important things Raven. Never forget that, your personal power will stem from that." There wasn't really anything to say to a comment like that, so Raven said nothing. She didn't feel like she knew either of those things anymore. Lady Heather motioned to the wall. "I want the painting to go there. I imagine it would need to be a bit bigger to fill the space adequately." Lady Heather turned to smile that small smile again at Raven. "I suspect a painting of that size will take a considerable amount of time, will you do it?"
Raven looked at the large wall. "You want it bigger than life." She spoke quietly, while trying to figure out if she really had time for that.
"Any Mistress is bigger than life Raven." Lady Heather moved closer to her. "It is persona, attitude. It's knowing yourself and what you want and being willing to get it." Raven shivered a little at the dominance in Lady Heather's voice. The Mistress's voice softened at that. "They took your control from you. Would you like to learn how to get that back?"
"I'm not a Mistress." Raven felt a blush cover her cheeks, especially with the studying gaze that earned her.
"No, I don't suppose you are. You appear to be a natural submissive." Lady Heather walked around her slowly and Raven stood very still as the woman did that. "You did notice that when I asked you at lunch what you looked for in a woman your first answer wasn't attractive, it wasn't funny or smart. You said strong. You weren't talking physically strong were you?" Raven started to replay that conversation in her mind, trying to remember if she'd really said strong first. It was just polite chit chat between women, but Raven had felt a little on the spot answering at the time, she wasn't sure she could remember what she'd said. "Answer me." Lady Heather demanded while circling her.
"No, not physically, not just physically." Raven's heart was beating a little faster as she stood completely still.
"There's more to say…" Lady Heather spoke softly.
"Mistress." Raven spoke automatically.
"How does it feel?" Lady Heather moved to stand in front of her, but Raven didn't look up. "How do you feel now?"
"I don't know." Raven's voice was slightly higher, tighter.
Raven felt Lady Heather step so very close before whispering. "Do you want to serve? That's what you called it."
Raven's eyes jerked up to stare into Lady Heather's a mix of horror and something less identifiable swirled through her. Her horror was in response to that other feeling. Lady Heather stepped back just a little.
"See, submissive. It isn't all fear you feel." The dominant, in control voice ended and Lady Heather could have just been talking about the weather with the tone she used. "Know yourself Raven, there is considerable power in doing that. You can be a mystery to other people, but you shouldn't be a mystery to yourself."
"I just want to paint." Raven spoke into the silence and stared at the wall. She didn't like how her emotions seemed to roll over her.
"Then you will." Lady Heather nodded and moved to sit on the other side of the desk. "And if you decide you want more, just let me know. The offer still stands."
"To be your slave?" Raven glared.
"No, to finally be your own Mistress. I suspect you haven't been for a very long time, if ever." Lady Heather leaned over her desk a little, towards Raven. "You may enjoy submitting to others occasionally. It would be healthier for someone with such strong submissive tendencies to indulge once in a while, but what you need to work on is control. You have very little of it in your life right now. You are running, you don't pick where or when, you don't pick who you'll be or what you'll do. You have enough submission in your life right now, you need control. You need to know who Raven is so she doesn't get lost in all of this."
Raven just stared as she absorbed that. She hadn't even noticed how much control she'd handed over to Irene, she just saw it as doing what needed to be done. Irene's power was much better for keeping Raven safe and her connections were much better too. She still believed that she was better off with Irene helping her, she felt safer that way, but what did Raven control?
The room fell into a comfortable quiet as Lady Heather logged on to her computer and Raven just watched the woman type. "Drahke wants me to negotiate price with her, she claims you tend to underprice yourself." Lady Heather's eyes turned to her and there was more meaning there. "You don't know your talents or your worth Raven even in the part of yourself you pull strength from. I want you to see the negotiations and I want you to quietly sit there and listen to what you hear." Lady Heather smiled a little, "of course that is only if you are willing to consider taking my commission and working here in the club to do it."
"I'll do it." Raven spoke softly. "I'll do it." She felt nervous, a bit lost, but she felt like whatever it was Lady Heather was offering her was something that maybe she really needed.
Lady Heather's head tilted just a little, a very subtle indication of her approval. "Very good. While we can wait for Drahke to negotiate price, I think we can figure out a schedule on our own." The woman turned to her computer. "My business picks up after dark but a few hours before dark I tend to work on paperwork and other things. What are your hours at the Brothel?'
"Ah." Raven still felt weird hearing that, like she should clarify what she did there. "I'm working Wednesday through Sunday right now, but once Jonathan comes back I'm probably going to get my hours cut." Unless the Brothel really needed two cashiers, which was doubtful. During her training it was rather slow, since she was doing part of what the Madam's normally did unless it was busy. Raven was just trusting that there was a job for her there, but maybe Irene had other plans for her. Double guessing a precog was frustrating, so Raven just sighed. "So I'm not sure what's going to happen."
"Okay, so we'll schedule a week at a time then." Lady Heather started to suggest times and Raven found that even as busy as Lady Heather must be, she was freeing up a lot of time for Raven. "Of course I know that you have to finish Drahke's painting first."
"You bet she does." Drahke came in carrying the serving tray with tea. After setting it down on the desk Drahke moved to stand behind Raven's chair and gently squeezed her shoulder while leaning down to ask quietly. "Are you doing okay?"
"Yeah." Raven nodded as well and felt another soft squeeze to her tense shoulder.
"Good, so let's see how much we can milk her for." Drahke smiled teasingly, knowing that Lady Heather had to hear all of this. As negotiations went on Raven was stunned at the amount that Drahke was asking for, and even more stunned at what she'd managed to get, complete with a partial payment in advance that was more than what Raven would have asked total. Raven stared at the check after Lady Heather handed it to her.
"Surprised by your worth?" The Mistress asked softly. Raven didn't bother to answer yes.
"I better go get more supplies." She spoke softly. "I just need a day or two to access that guest room to finish up Drahke's and then I can start on yours." She felt like she should work very hard for this money. It wasn't that long ago that she had to pay people in favors or money to sit for her sometimes, if they weren't in the mood. It wasn't the same anymore and while it was much better, it was still an adjustment.
………………
The phone drew Raven's attention away from the TV. "Hello?"
"Raven dear, how are you doing?" Irene's voice was friendly and chatty.
"I'm doing good." Raven smiled and sat back down on the couch while turning the volume off on the XFiles.
"And working at the Brothel?" Irene pushed like she knew the answer.
Raven sighed. "You were right." While the place still made her uncomfortable at times, she enjoyed the work and the women. She wouldn't have met Heather or Drahke if she hadn't taken the job.
"Ah yes. Can you say that again, I rarely get to hear a Raven say it so well." Irene teased.
"Smart ass." Raven smiled. "Are you two doing okay?"
"As well as can be expected, given that Mystique is being forced to play by the government's rules. It really puts us at a disadvantage with my visions, because they want to discuss things before we act and there isn't always time for that." Irene's happy tone faded to subtle irritation. Raven had heard that Mystique was being forced to work for the government, but she thought the fools that came up with that idea would most likely pay. Mystique wasn't a woman anyone could control for long. Well, anyone but Irene. "Well, anyway, are you planning to stay? I think I may be able to let you stay there a few more months."
"I'd like that." Raven paused. "Did you know about Lady Heather?" There was no way Raven would have ever gone to that club if it weren't for Drahke.
"You give me far too much credit dear." Irene protested, but she did sound pleased with herself. "So, you do realize that the Brothel may have to change your position now that they have their cashier back?"
"I didn't see how I could keep my hours." Raven started to think about what else she could do. She wasn't a great cook and Martha wasn't likely to leave her domain easily.
"I was talking with Lois." Irene said and Raven could hear tapping in the background, like Irene was fidgeting. "She could use a floor maid, Lana just quit, and it takes time to hire someone new for that position. Not that you heard any of that from me."
"Ah," Raven's eyes widened. "That's talking to the customers." A floor maid greeted customers, talked to them, explained what how things worked for new customers and introduced the women. They talked to ALL the customers.
"Lois said that the wardrobe you had was good enough and she thinks you're friendly and professional. I hear you aren't as isolated as you used to be. You talk with the women." Irene continued after a short pause. "Or they could use a driver on busy nights, but I don't really like the idea of you out in a car alone with these men. It's better to have male drivers."
"I want to stay." Raven struggled with what was worse, introducing the women she worked with and explaining how the brothel worked or picking up people from the city to take them to the brothel. She could get a different job, but being at the Brothel gave her models that actually would pay her for the art. During slow times right now she was making money for sketches. "I'll be a floor maid." She found herself saying, but her voice was tight with tension. She just found Drahke and Heather, she just started really doing art. She liked where that was going, but this was a hard price to pay.
"Okay, I'll tell Lois she can hold off on advertising that position." Irene paused. "I know this is hard for you Raven, and I'd never put you through this if I didn't think you'd be getting something good out of it. I hope you know that."
"I do." Raven stared at the TV, watching Scully run across the screen. "And I want you to know I really am glad that I have you. I don't want to think how lost I would have been if I didn't have a friend like you." She wanted Irene to know that she'd been upgraded to a friend.
"Oh Sweetheart." Irene spoke softly. "You take care, and I'll call you again soon to see how you are."
Once she hung up Raven just stared at the TV for a moment, trying to not envision the mess she'd make of this new job. She got up and grabbed another beer and while she was opening it she noticed the book Heather had lent her, Dominance & Personal Power. It had been sitting on the table unread for a week. Raven picked it up and opened it to table of contents, glancing at the chapter titles. Maybe there was something in here she could use to be a better Floor Maid. Some trick to control the sometimes belligerent men that came into the brothel.
………………
"I want you to just watch how Lexi or I do it for the next few days." Lois sat across from Raven in the kitchen. "I won't let you do it on your own until I get the feeling you are going to be okay."
Raven took a deep breath and nodded. It was a bit comforting to know she'd get training for this, not just thrown out there. "Thank you."
"What for?" Lois gave Raven a slightly puzzled look.
"Well, I'm hardly qualified for any of this."
"It's not that hard." Lois smiled a little. "of course by the time your done here you'll probably know everything about the business side of it all. Funny how that works. Irene couldn't have sent you at a better time." Lois' smile grew and Raven gave her a questioning look, but Lois just seemed to sit up straighter, in her all about business pose. "I want you to shadow me tonight, but if the customers ask you anything be polite and refer them to me even if you know the answer, and never, ever quote prices. The girls will hate you for a very long time if you do that, don't even give the men a ballpark figure."
"Okay." She already knew better than to quote anything, the prices were a very sensitive topic. She'd heard enough bitching about that before from the prostitutes.
"Also don't steer business to," Lois stared at her and her eyes softened, "or away from your friends. I know you might have trouble seeing Drahke or Jewel picked in a lineup, but do your best to never let that show. They're professionals, and they are in it for the money, so they need those clients." This was something that Raven had already thought over a lot, and tried to come to grips with. "Also it is normally frowned on for our staff to date one of the girls, but…" Lois tilted her head down just a little. "If you ever decided to do that, I just ask that you are discrete so we don't have angry claims of favoritism."
"I'm not…" Raven's eyes widened a little as she realized that Lois thought she and Drahke might be getting ready to be more. "I'm not even staying here long."
"Live while you can girl, because someday you'll turn around and find out your damn near sixty five, and you want to have a few wild love affairs to warm you in your decrepit old age." Lois reached out a hand and rested it over Raven's on the table. "So if you do, just not during work hours."
Rather than point out again that she wasn't, Raven just blushed and nodded.
"Good, the owner would be upset with me if I got in the way of romance." Lois teased. It sounded like the opposite of what an owner would want, so Raven assumed it was sarcasm.
It was the third lineup where Drahke was chosen by some middle aged man with a comb over. Drahke smiled at him like she liked him and led him towards the hallway and her room. Raven had never actually seen any of the clients, just heard them. Her eyes followed the pair until Lois gently bumped her and started talking to the man that hadn't selected anyone yet.
Drahke came out to line up again an hour later and was passed over. When the parlor cleared of men she moved to stand by Raven, but Raven took in the tighter than normal grip Drahke had on her own arms while trying to appear casual. "So, how's the first day?" Drahke asked, her voice just a little tighter.
"Stressful." Raven let out a long sigh. "That last guy was looking at me too long." Her voice was quieter as she admitted her discomfort, not wanting the others to tease. "And I don't like how they look at any of the women."
"Oh, don't worry about them. There are enough Professionals to take care of them." Drahke smiled, but her lips were a little too thin for it to seem natural.
"You aren't too dirty to be my friend." Raven whispered, remembering how she'd felt around Tessa after she'd been used. "I've probably served more in a single night than you ever have." Raven looked away and studied a couch. "So no stones, glass house and all."
"God, that so isn't the same thing Raven." Drahke took a step closer, making their bodies touch. "Not the same thing at all. You were raped, you didn't decide to be there and you sure as hell didn't negotiate a price first."
Raven took a deep breath. "I'm sorry." She muttered. "This job is hard, seeing… it's hard, but I don't have many friends Drahke. Hardly any that I trust, or can trust, so I'll get over this." Raven sucked on a tooth and nibbled on her lip enough it hurt a little so she wouldn't tear up. Drahke ran a gentle hand over her shoulder and Raven leaned into the touch just a little.
"It's not me." Drahke spoke it as a fact while her hand rested on Raven.
"No, not you." Raven glanced around and noticed a few eyes on them.
"Do you want to stay after your shift and work out with me?" They did have a gym for the prostitutes, because they weren't allowed to leave the brothel. Raven had never used it.
"Okay." Raven didn't even have a change of clothes for that, but she knew they maybe needed that time together, and Raven might need to beat on something. Hopefully they had a punching bag. Drahke smiled at her softly and leaned forward to kiss her gently on the temple before moving toward Lois. It was very busy on Fridays and it looked like another group of men were on the way, but that looked more like Lois wanted to remind Drahke not to be too affectionate with Raven at work. Who ever thought Raven would warrant that talk again. It was kind of nice that someone wanted to touch her, kiss her and be affectionate. Raven turned away from the quiet scolding Drahke was getting to look at the walls and paintings on the walls again. Affection she could do, sex might take her a long time, but affection… Raven sighed. She'd like affection.
They didn't actually work out that night, they just talked about growing up and Drahke's dream of owning her own business. Drahke went into detail about what she wanted the Victorian house to look like, the curtains she'd pick, and the clientele she'd try to pull in. By the time she left, Raven felt better. The gentle hug had something to do with it. Raven couldn't remember the last time a woman hugged her like that, other than Tessa.
It made more sense why Lois would say something about her and Drahke now. Strange how Raven hadn't noticed it changing between them. Drahke had never been quite so protective or physical with her before tonight.
She sat in the car for a moment before even trying to start it. Instead she pulled down the mirror. "Your girlfriend is a prostitute." She whispered, just to hear it. She wasn't quite sure it was true. "Well, then maybe she won't want sex." She answered her accusation with something she found a bit of a positive. "girlfriend." She started the car. Was she ready for that? Was she reading something that wasn't there? Was she actually disappointed with the idea that it might not be there? Raven blinked a few times when she realized she was.
Drahke was strong. She was also beautiful, classy, fun to be around and she supported Raven's dreams, the ones Raven doubted she could have anytime soon, but Drahke supported her art.
Raven turned off the car and got back out of it. She'd never be able to sleep with these thoughts in her head. She walked quickly back to the brothel and found Drahke on the porch smoking, no, not smoking, letting off a little fire while no one was looking. Raven smiled at the surprised look on Drahke's face when she found someone beside her. "I was thinking, when you get off work… maybe we could see a movie?" Raven blushed, but the night hid some of it. "Dinner and a movie?" Her voice was softer as she asked.
"Are you asking me on a date?" Drahke turned toward her and studied her. Raven fidgeted a bit but looked back.
"Yes."
"Okay." Drahke smiled.