Chapter 6

            Moira once again took hold of her tiny charge and held her in her open palm. She rolled the girl onto her stomach and began to stroke the tiny backside. The tiny girl sighed as the giant fingers of her mistress caressed her body gently.

            “Little One,” Moira asked, “what made you decide to share that idea with me?”

            “Because,” Shannon answered sadly, “I took away so much from you because of my own stupidity that I want to do whatever I can to make up for what I’ve done.”

            “Are you seeking forgiveness from me, Shannon?” Moira asked curiously.

            “No, Mistress,” replied the tiny girl, “I don’t expect you to ever forgive me. I mean, I’d love it if you did, but I don’t expect you to. I just feel the least I can do is keep my promise to be a good little girl for you. I figured part of that is doing things to try to please you.”

            Moira let out a contented sigh and turned Shannon over again so she lay on her back.

            “Shannon,” the giant woman said, smiling down on her pet, “I don’t think you’re a bad person, you know. You’re just someone who did something really bad. The fact that you’ve been so willing to obey my commands, even though some were really humiliating to you, tells me I’m not the only one punishing you.”

            “Mistress,” Shannon started, “I… I deserve…”

            “You deserve,” Moira, responded, “whatever I feel you deserve. Right now, I feel you deserve to rest in my hand and to have an adult conversation with me.”

            Shannon simply lay in her mistress’s palm and nodded.

            “Little One,” Moira asked, “why were you trying to rob a grocery store? I mean, it was a small store and they couldn’t have had much money in the registers.”

            “I was trying to get money to get out of town,” Shannon explained, “to get away from my boyfriend. When we started dating, he was as sweet as pie, but after we’d been dating awhile, he became a real asshole. He started making me hand over my paychecks to him and gave me little to live off of. Then he started to hit me. I had nowhere else to go in town, especially with the little bit of money he allowed me, so I stayed. Then one day, he fractured three of my ribs and sent me to County Medical. While I was recovering, I realized if I stayed with him, he’d end up killing me. So, I decided I had to escape. I needed money to do that though, so after I healed, I grabbed his pistol and went to that store. My plan was to get the money and get on a train. I’d surprise my brother in Georgia and I was sure he’d take me in. I went in and was as nervous as a whore in church. I thought the gun would just make things go faster, I wasn’t planning on using it. When your husband called out to security, I did what I usually do; panic and do something stupid!”

            Moira watched as the little woman broke into tears. She then realized Shannon had also become a victim. She tried to calm the tiny woman by stroking her hair with her fingertip, but to no avail.

            “I just wanted to get away from him!” Shannon cried through her tears.

            “Shannon, listen to me,” Moira spoke softly, “you’re not stupid. You were a woman in a desperate situation and that made you take rash and, frankly, desperate actions. You’ve just made me realize you’re a victim too, a victim of circumstance.”

            “How can you be so nice to me?” Shannon asked as her weeping subsided, “My actions took the lives of your husband and daughter!”

            “Yes,” Moira replied, “they did, but it sounds like, with the pressure you were under, once you panicked, you were running on pure fear and adrenaline. I realize you didn’t mean to hurt anyone. I didn’t know you were in an abusive relationship. I didn’t realize you were trying to get away from it. I think, with this newfound information, I can give you some kindness, don’t you think?”

            Shannon wiped her eyes and gazed up at the giantess. She saw the compassion in the huge orbs looking down at her.

            “Mistress,” Shannon said, “thank you. Thank you for being so generous with me.”

            “Shannon,” Moira replied, “thank you. I now have a better understanding of what things were like for you. Knowing these things will actually make it possible for me to forgive you.”

            “So,” the tiny woman asked, “does that mean…?”

            “Oh,” Moira shook her head, “we’re not there yet, but we’re well on our way I think.”

            Moira set the tiny girl down next to her and got out of bed. Then she scooped the little woman up and carried her to her cage. Moira set Shannon down on her bed and latched the cage door.

            “Little One,” Moira informed her, “I’m going to take a shower. I have some shopping I need to do for the house. I want you to relax on your bed and think about what we’ve discussed. Oh, and don’t punish yourself so much anymore. A lot of things were out of your control.”

            Moira left Shannon to her thoughts and went into the bathroom. Shannon could hear the thundering sound of the water as it rained down on her mistress. She sat on her little bed and thought about her conversation with Moira. The tiny woman wondered if Moira could forgive her. She didn’t know for sure, but she really hoped so. Although, in Shannon’s mind, she also craved forgiveness from Moira’s husband, John and their daughter, Jenna.

            So lost in her thoughts was Shannon that she hadn’t noticed the cat had wandered in. Ashes jumped onto the dresser and began sniffing. It wasn’t until he began purring that Shannon realized his presence. She muffled a scream as their eyes locked. The huge feline simply continued to purr. Shannon, seeing Ashes tail was up with a little curl at the tip and knowing that meant he was content, summoned up her courage and began to approach him. Ashes lowered his head and took a closer look at the tiny woman who was nearly to the bars of her cage. Nervously, Shannon slowly reached her arm through the bars and placed her tiny hand on the fur above his nose. Even at her size, his fur was soft and luxurious. She began to stoke his fur and Ashes laid down to enjoy it.

            Shannon was really enjoying petting the cat when Moira walked out of the bathroom, draped in a white towel. She watched her two pets interact for a moment and giggled, alerting them that their mistress was there. Shannon looked over at the giant woman and quickly pulled her arm in. Ashes, on the other hand, wasn’t ready for the attention to end and started rubbing his head against Shannon’s cage to try to get some more affection out of her.

            Moira scooped up the cat and sat on her bed. Ashes began to lick the beads of water off her arm. It tickled and Moira let out a soft laugh. She began to pet Ashes on his back and the loud purring began again.

            “Little One,” Moira asked, “are you OK?”

            “Yes, Mistress,” Shannon answered, “all he wanted was someone to pet him I think.”

            “Yeah,” Moira responded, “he’s a bit of an attention whore.”

            “So,” the tiny woman inquired, remembering her nightmare, “is he a relatively gentle cat, Mistress?”

            “Yes,” Moira nodded, “but I’ll still keep an eye on him nonetheless. I don’t want him hurting you. I’m proud of you though. It was very brave of you to reach out and pet him like you did.”

            Moira stood up and dropped the towel to the ground. Shannon took in the sight of her owner fully, slightly turned on by the vision of feminine beauty before her.

            “See anything you like?” the giantess asked.

            Shannon nodded and merely replied, “Yes, Mistress.”

            Her tiny head looked over her mistress’s body and noticed something was a little different. She realized what it was the second she scrolled her eyes down.

            “Mistress!” the little woman exclaimed, “you shaved your pussy!”

            Moira smiled wickedly, “I thought you might like that. It’ll keep you from getting tangled in my pubic hair and besides, I think this looks nicer, more inviting. Don’t you think?”

            Shannon nodded as Moira reached into a drawer and took out a pair of lace panties. She slipped them on one leg at a time and reached for a matching bra. She put it on and walked over to the closet. She took out two blouses and held them up for Shannon to see. The first one was royal blue in color and appeared to be made of cotton while the other one was pearl colored and looked like it was made of satin.

            “Which one do you think I’d look best in?” Moira asked.

            “Mistress,” Shannon answered, “you’d look great in either one, but if I had to choose, I’d go with the pearl colored one.”

            Moira smiled and put her blue blouse away and put on her pearl one. She reached into her closet once more and took a medium length black skirt off of a hanger and slipped it on. She retrieved her black pumps and a pair of nylon stockings and sat back down on her bed. She pulled up the stockings slowly and then put on her shoes.

            “How do I look, Little One?” she asked.

            “Stunning, Mistress,” Shannon replied, “I’d fuck you.”

            Moira laughed hard, “You already have!”

            “Oh yeah!” the tiny woman laughed.

            “It feels good to laugh again,” Moira said, “well, I’d better get to the store. You be a good girl while I’m gone, OK?”

            “Mistress,” Shannon replied, “how much trouble can I get into when I’m in my cage?”

            Moira nodded, “Good point.”

            Moira grabbed her car keys and waved goodbye to her little charge. She carried the cat out of the bedroom and shut the door behind her, leaving little Shannon alone in the room. The doll-sized woman decided she’d try to get some sleep so she rested her head on her pillow and drifted into a sound slumber.

            Two hours later, Shannon was awakened by the sound of the bedroom door opening. She sat up in her bed and watched as Moira walked in. She wore a huge smile on her face and she seemed excited. She gazed over at her little woman and waved at her.

            “Wow, Mistress,” Shannon said, “you must really enjoy shopping!”

            “No more than any other woman,” Moira answered, “it just so happens I met this really cute guy and he’s interested in me!”

            This made Shannon smile, “That’s wonderful, Mistress!”

            Moira sat down and began to tell her little one everything she knew about the man she’d just met. Moira told her about the kind of work he did, what kind of food he liked and so on. Then Shannon thought of something and hoped it wouldn’t ruin her mistress’s mood.

            “Mistress?” Shannon asked, “did you tell him about me?

            “No, not yet,” Moira answered, “why do you ask?”

            “I was worried he was only acting like he was interested so he could get his hands on me,” the tiny girl replied, “I’m sure there are a lot of guys out there who would LOVE to get their hands on a woman who could not fend off their advances.”

            “Well,” the giantess replied back, “that’s very sweet of you to think about protecting my feelings like that, but that had already crossed my mind. Besides, it’d been awkward to mention you during a first meeting with a guy. I think I’ll save you for our third date.”

            “You’re welcome, Mistress,” Shannon said, “so does that mean there’s going to be a first date?”

            “Yes,” Moira nodded, “we’re going to dinner Friday night.”

            “Really?” Shannon asked, “where’s he taking you?”

            “I’m taking him to that new Mexican place, Casa Ramos,” Moira smiled.

            Shannon giggled. Her mistress was becoming more assertive and it seemed to fit her. The tiny woman got out of her bed and walked up to her cage door. Moira closed the bedroom door and unlatched Shannon’s cage door. The tiny girl waited for her mistress to retrieve her, but Moira simply sat down on her bed and looked at her.

            “Mistress,” Shannon asked, wondering if she was being tested, “may I come out of my cell?”

            Moira grinned, realizing why Shannon was asking, “Yes, you may.”

            Shannon took a single tentative step and then another, for the first time, coming out of her cage on her own. Her mistress looked her over.

            “What’s wrong, Little One?” she asked.

            “Nothing’s really wrong, Ma’am,” the little woman answered, “I just need to use the bathroom.”

            Moira stood up and took Shannon into her hands. She carried the tiny woman into the bathroom and set her down in the sink. Then the giant woman turned her back so Shannon could do her business in private. Shannon spread her legs over the drain and urinated. When she was done, she called out to Moira.

            “I’m done, Mistress,” she said.

            Moira turned around and turned on the warm water. She plugged the drain and the sink began to fill. Worry crept up on the tiny woman. Is this it? she thought to herself, is she going to kill me now? Moira was whistling a happy little tune by the time she turned the water off.

            “OK,” Moira informed her, “bath time!”

            Shannon let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully, she was only going to get a bath. She realized, after this morning’s activities, she did need one. Moira poured some soap onto her fingertips and held her hand out so Shannon could reach it.

            “You’re not going to bathe me this time, Mistress?” Shannon asked.

            “Not this time,” answered Moira, “I’ll let you do it yourself this time. I’ll just watch.”

            Shannon nodded as she began to lather herself up. She washed slowly so she could give her mistress a good show. Moira seemed to enjoy watching her so Shannon paid special attention to her womanhood. This brought a smile to the giant woman’s face.

            “As much as I’m enjoying your little performance,” Moira finally said, “you need to finish up. I’m hungry.”

            Shannon nodded, realizing her own hunger, “Yes Mistress.”

            Shannon finished washing herself then rinsed herself off. When she finished, she raised her arms to be picked up. Moira unstopped the drain and the water level lowered until it was gone. Moira wrapped her fingers around the miniature girl and lifted her out of the sink. Using a hand towel, Moira carefully dried Shannon off.

            “Mistress,” Shannon asked, “may I ask a favor?”

            “You may ask,” Moira answered with a smile, “but whether or not I do it for you is entirely up to me. What is it?”

            “Well, I was wondering,” the tiny girl responded, “if you’d take me back to the cemetery sometime soon.”

            “Why do you want me to take you there?” asked Moira.

            “I’d like to apologize to John and to Jenna,” she answered.

            Moira was a little taken aback but quickly regained her composure. She had not expected Shannon to want to apologize to her husband or her daughter. If that’s what the diminutive woman wanted, who was she to stand in the way?

            “Yes,” Moira finally answered, “that I’ll do.”

            Moira carried Shannon into the kitchen and placed her next to the phone. Moira picked up the receiver and put it to her ear.

            “A little help here?” Moira said, looking down at her human pet, “I want you to dial this phone number. Five, five, five, six, two, one, nine.”

            Shannon, using both hands, pressed each number diligently and wondered who her owner was calling.

            “Hello? Fei Chan’s?” Moira spoke into the phone, “I’d like to order some of your dumplings, an order of Shanghai beef and an order of pork fried rice.”

            She gave the man on the other end the address, thanked him and hung up the phone.

            “I didn’t feel like cooking,” Moira explained, “they said it’ll be here in about thirty minutes.”

            The time passed quickly and soon both women were having their meal. Moira set small portions of each item onto a small plate and gave it to her pet girl. Shannon dug in and Moira laughed, commenting on how such a tiny thing could eat so much. Shannon took the ribbing in stride and concentrated on her food. She realized she did seem to pack away a lot of food for only being eight inches tall.

            Once they had had their fill, Moira put away the leftovers and washed her hands. Then she retrieved Shannon from the table and had her hold her hands under the faucet. Then Moira put her back on the table.

            “I’ll be right back, Little One,” Moira told her, “I got something for you while I was out today.’

            Moira left Shannon on the table and went into her study. She picked up a small package wrapped in lavender paper and carried it back to her girl. She held it out and placed it in front of Shannon.

            “You may open it,” Moira said when she saw Shannon just standing there, waiting for permission.

            Shannon knelt down and began ripping the paper. It was like tearing construction paper to her, but she did not care. Her mistress was giving her a gift. She wasn’t going to bitch about having to go through a little work to get it. After the first few tears, Shannon saw that it was a paperback book.

            “It’s just a little something for when you’re alone,” Moira said, “that’s not to say you can’t read it when I’m home.”

            “Thank you, Mistress!” Shannon replied excitedly.

            She continued unwrapping her gift with the enthusiasm of a child on Christmas. Her eyes went wide with joy when she revealed the title of the book.

            The Count of Monte Cristo.