Chapter Five

"I'd really rather not." Sabrina grumbled as she remembered to close her legs, sitting on the couch in the dress.

"But it's so cute!" Lila's laugh was high pitched but jolly, she was genuinely amused. "You should call her Mama all the time!"

"I'm glad nothing bad happened." Faith plopped down on the other side of Sabrina, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "That must have been really scary!"

"It was. I'll be honest, I cried."

Faith couldn't hide her wry smirk. "I bet that the only thing that saved you is that dress. It might work in the future. Minors don't need to carry ID."

"I'm twenty-six! I can't pass for a teenager!"

"I'm twenty-six," Lila countered, "and I get mistaken for a teenager all the time. I call Kinsley 'Mama' in public sometimes. It just makes things easier. It's no big deal."

"Wait, you already call her that?" Sabrina blinked, turning toward the smaller woman, equally surprised at her admission and her age.

"Sometimes... shut up." Lila's cheeks flushed pink and she turned away, picking her controller back up from the couch. She scowled and huffed, grumbling, "Maybe you secretly want it, and that's why you're objecting so much." The TV came to life once again, gunfire and zombies.

"I do not!"

"Very convincing!" Faith laughed, standing up and stretching. "Maybe you shouldn't resist so much, hun. We're only trying to help, y'know."

"You're right, you're right. No sense in being a baby about it."

That wry smirk quirked Faith's lips. Sabrina cocked her head to one side, wondering what in-joke she was missing, but for once the two didn't explain it. She cleaned up the remainder of the cheeseburger dinner that Kinsley had purchased and headed to the bathroom for a shower. Frowning at her reflection, she sighed. A razor was waiting for her on the sink, one that hadn't been there that morning when she brushed her teeth.

She didn't like shaving under her arms, she had stopped quite a while ago. It got her looks sometimes but generally the sort of person that would thumb their nose at armpit hair wasn't the sort of person she wanted to associate with. Similarly, she rarely shaved her legs - but thankfully the hairs there were blonde and generally unseen, exposed by the hem of the dress.

The water in the shower was nice and hot, despite the age of the tub and the plumbing. Water cascaded over her, washing away her stress and pain as always. Showers in the Dollhouse were nice. Relaxing, restoring, luxurious despite the modest conditions. At the end, she complied and scraped away her rebellion, leaving her armpits hairless and then with a sigh and an irritatingly long amount of time, her legs matched. With her hair being more than the smallest amount of stubble, she was starting to look more feminine - and she didn't particularly care for it. Her hair had been too long when she had arrived, now she couldn't see her scalp anymore.

"Dresses and shaved legs." Her reflection didn't answer, of course. "But it's no big deal, right? I'll get a job soon, it's only temporary... and it might help me land a job."

She stared down at her arms, the towel pinned in her pits, around her chest. The intertwining roses on her left forearm and an abstract tribal design on her right. She'd get more if she had the money. Sabrina loved her ink, her declaration of her identity, that she wouldn't be shackled by the expectations of traditional society, supposedly "polite" society - but she couldn't deny that it had hindered her job searches before.

She needed to shave her head again, and soon.

Faith was just stepping out of Emmie's room as Sabrina exited the bathroom, wrapped in the towel. "I moved some clothes into your closet, not much but this way nobody has to deliver you a new outfit every day. Sorry I just went in, I tried to ask you while you were showering, but I don't think you heard me knock."

"It's okay." Sabrina felt a little irritated at the invasion of her space... but it wasn't really her space. It was Emmie's room and she was just sleeping in it. "I appreciate it."

She was deeply relieved to find an unopened pack underwear, a couple of pairs of blue jeans, and a half-dozen old but simple t-shirts. With a grin, she pulled on a gray t-shirt that declared "I Hate Shirts With Words On Them". They were all ladies' cut, apparently - tiny sleeves that didn't go halfway to her bicep, fabric pulled tight across her chest to accentuate her breasts. She preferred loose, men's shirts or tank tops, but she wasn't going to complain. It wasn't her usual standoffish clothing, but it was a lot better than the dress had been.

She ran the damp towel over her hair one more time, frowning that it wasn't dry yet when her phone buzzed on the dresser.

Jewellee: I haven't heard from you in a week, what's the word?

With a grimace, she began tapping out a reply with her thumbs. She shouldn't have left Jules hanging. It was hard to admit to herself that she had actually been enjoying herself lately and hadn't thought as much about talking to the friend who had been digitally standing beside her for so long.

RoseAndThorns: Sorry Jules, I've just been really busy. Trying to find a job.

Sabrina carried the towel back to the bathroom, shutting her door behind her. After hanging the towel to dry, she plopped down on the couch next to Lila to read.

"It's just that I'm not sure at this point how to tell Angie, you know? Sometimes I want to be the domme, but she's so, so good at it that I just kind of melt." Faith wasn't even looking at Lila as she spoke, both of their eyes turned toward the TV. "Watch out! You're getting flanked."

Jewelee: How's it going? Any offers?

"Got him! Look Faith, just tell her. Or, I dunno, spank her ass one night. Maybe she'll get the hint. Bree, are you more dommy or subby?"

RoseAndThorns: None so far, not even an interview yet. I'm going to start pounding the pavement tomorrow

"What, me?" Sabrina blinked, glancing up at the pair. Lila's eyes were still fixed on the screen, but Faith was looking rather inquisitive. "I don't know, I'm not really into that stuff. Like Fifty Shades of Grey? No thanks."

Jewelee: But you're still staying with them, right? The Dollhouse actually exists, you're not just pulling my leg

"That book is garbage," Lila said derisively.

"No no, not like that at all." Faith shook her head. "Like, do you want a taller partner or a shorter partner? Do you want to be the one kissing or do you want someone to kiss you?"

RoseAndThorns: It exists, they're actually really nice

"She's a sub."

"I am not. I um... I guess I like it when my partner's taller. I like being kissed more than I like being the kisser, especially if they're taller."

"And you want someone to tie you up and spank you." Lila's grin was enormous even though she was still fully focused on the game, shooting and dodging.

Jewelee: Are the rumors true? That they're into weird stuff?

"I do not! I've never done anything like that." It was difficult holding essentially two conversations at once, but she wasn't ready to let go of her connection with Jules in that moment.

RoseAndThorns: Not really? At least not that I've seen. They just like video games a lot and some dirty jokes, pretty normal

The current conversation didn't go far enough to prove that anyone was into "weird stuff", spanking was tamer than some of the stuff she'd read in her novels. Her thoughts drifted to The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty, a book Rice had written under a pen name... and one that she never finished. It was all about sex slaves and humiliation - it had been too much for her, the entire four-book set was in her apartment but she hadn't read anything but the beginning of the first book. Sabrina stared down at her phone, feeling the heat rising in her cheeks.

"Oh my goodness, you blush at the drop of a hat." Faith laughed, setting a gentle hand on Sabrina's leg. "Look, you like it when someone tall leans down and kisses you, right? Even though you're quite butch, you like to feel... pursued."

"I mean, everyone likes that, right?"

Jewelee: Tell me everything!

"All I'm saying is, if you do like these things, that could mean you might be a little more on the submissive side... and you might actually enjoy it if you gave it a try."

RoseAndThorns: Sec

"I don't think all of that kinky stuff is for me. Power to you if that's your thing, but it's just not mine." It wasn't entirely the truth. She had some small curiosity about it but was far too embarrassed to admit it.

"Sure, sure. What about you, Lila? What about the cute security guard at work?"

"Mallory? Oh, she's going to be mine at some point." Lila giggled, a tiny girlish laugh that didn't match the tone of her words at all. "I really want to squish her boobs."

Sabrina couldn't help but laugh over the absurdity of the childlike Lila's statement. It was hard to think of her as an adult at all, honestly, which only made her declaration seem sillier.

Lila shot a split-second glare at the other woman before snapping her attention back to the game. "What? You're gay, you don't like boobs?"

"I'm bi." Sabrina sounded more defensive than she intended to, that small gap still between herself and Lila.

"And I'm a lesbian but we're both gay, dummy." Lila sneered, pausing the game and frowning at Sabrina. "Jeez, you're so dense sometimes. Do you or do you not like boobs?"

"On a woman, sure. Not so much on a guy."

"Ugh! You're being a brat. Faith, drop some ice in her underwear."

"What!?"

"Sure thing." Faith got up and headed for the kitchen as though this were a normal request, as though Lila had asked for a soda.

Sabrina followed her, eyes wide as she opened the fridge. "You can't be serious. Wait. Faith! Stop!"

"You're officially one of us now!" Lila's voice rang out from the living room as Sabrina screeched, reaching around behind her to try and fish the ice cube out of her panties. Faith had moved so confidently, so efficiently. She had plucked an ice cube from the bin in the freezer, taken one step and grabbed Sabrina by the wrist, spinning her around and in one fluid motion, releasing the wrist and pulling back the waistband of her jeans. The ice hurt against her flesh, but as she reached for it, Faith slapped her hand.

"Faith!"

"You earned that one. You're one of us now." Faith smirked, folding placing her hands on her hips - ready to smack a hand away again.

"What does that even mean?!" The ice was beyond uncomfortable, it was painful against her skin. Sabrina gritted her teeth and turned around, reaching back to attempt to fish it out again. Faith reached around her and batted her hands away yet again.

"Is this too much bullying for you, Bree?" That was the first time Faith had used the nickname, and Sabrina's heart sank. "This is how it is in this house. We were feeling you out, now we know we like you. You like us, don't you?"

The trickle of cold water slid down, dripping through the thin fabric of her panties, dripping down her thigh. Sabrina winced. "Of course I like you. I've really enjoyed living here the past couple of weeks. But that doesn't mean- "

"You're the new girl," Lila called out. "That means we're going to pick on you a bit. It just means we like you. Take the ice out of your pants and come play!"

With gritted teeth, she tried once more. This time, Faith allowed it. Sabrina tossed the remnants of the ice cube in the sink and rubbed some warmth into her bottom.

And swore she'd get Faith back for that one, in some subtle way.