In the Den of the Beast

I decided to not worry about it and see what was in the chest. The lid was surprisingly heavy, almost too heavy to open, but I managed to get my weight under it and push upwards. The same dark part of my brain that was afraid that my penis was broken was now also afraid of this heavy lid slamming down on it. After making sure the lid was fully open and safely resting against the wall, I peered inside.

There was another note in the same handwriting, although this was in all caps. However, my eyes were drawn to the chest's other contents: two shallow metal bowls, one filled with water and the other with dried meat that looked to be some sort of jerky; a small, black leather collar with metal spikes and the words "Property of James Moore;" a matching leather gag with a red plastic ball; and another device that was strange to me.

My experiences with secretly watching BDSM videos on my laptop when my roommate was out led me to speculate that it might be part of my punishment if I didn't follow the rules, since half of it looked like a "cat o' nine tails"-style whip, although I had never seen anything like the opposite end. Opposite the end with the leather whips was a cruel, metal hook that gleamed in the light. The end of the hook was not sharp, but instead a large, perfectly round ball of the same metal. Perhaps a stainless steel? Curious, I looked to see if the instructions offered more explanation.

The instructions featured a numbered list:

1. While you are in this apartment, you belong to your master. You must obey his commands.

2. You must always wear your collar to show you belong to your master.

3. While you are in this apartment, you are not allowed clothes other than your collar. You may only wear clothes if your master tells you to leave the apartment. When you leave, you must wear clothes that have been approved by your master.

4. You may only eat and drink from your bowls unless your master gives you permission to do otherwise.

5. You must not urinate or defecate inside the apartment. You are also not allowed to shower or otherwise bathe yourself, nor are you allowed to shave, wear deodorant or cologne, trim your own nails, or clean your own teeth.

My hands were shaking as I reached into the chest to pick up the spiked collar. Upon closer inspection, I did notice that the metal bowls had "STEVEN" painted on the side. How long had James been planning this? After fastening the collar around my neck, I lifted out the bowls and placed them on the floor near my bed. I suppose I was kind of hungry, and very thirsty. I lapped at the water before just holding my face to the surface and sucking. I did the same with the jerky, which seemed to be venison. It was obvious James wanted me to pretend to be a dog, and it was kind of fun to do so.

After finishing both food and water, I checked the list again. I was fine with obeying commands since I really trusted James to not tell me to do anything I really didn't want to. I was also fine with the collar, the constant presence of which was actually rather erotic. The whole thing with eating from bowls was also fine. If he was going to get off on that, fine. But being able to pee or take a dump in the apartment? It fit the theme of the fetish I was getting into, but how would that work? And if James wasn't here, how would he know if I just used the toilet?

The more I thought about it, the more I realized this was going to be a problem sooner rather than later. I had lapped up all of that water so quickly, I hadn't thought about the fact that it all had to go somewhere. My stomach gurgled as I contemplated my swelling bladder. I decided to explore the apartment, leaving the rules, ball gag, and weird hook/whip in the chest.

On the other side of the door was a small hallway that led down to other rooms. Padding quietly on the hardwood floor, I gave in to curiosity and started trying doors. I don't know what I was expecting. Part of my mind was fantasizing wildly about what a den of sexual depravity this must be and was expecting to see a dungeon full of leather restraints, sex swings, and knotted ropes. In reality, behind the first door was a small laundry area with washer, dryer, and a few shelves of cleaning supplies. My old clothes were there, neatly folded, although I decided to leave them and continue to play along. The continuing nakedness was adding to the excitement.

The next room looked like a pretty traditional study, although rather elegantly furnished. There was a computer at a rugged, walnut desk and a big leather easy chair next to several bookshelves that were overflowing with hard-bound classics. I noticed with a smile that James had literary tastes that reflected his obvious fetish: there was a lot of Jack London and Rudyard Kipling, but also several editions of Lolita. As I closed the door to the study, I wondered how James afforded all of this as a student worker at a library.

Having still not found a bathroom, I decided to keep trying doors, but I paused as I heard a sound coming from the other end of the apartment. Someone was at the door, undoing the lock and turning the handle. Surely it wasn't 8:00 yet? Maybe James was back early?

I was suddenly ashamed of my nakedness and worried about who it might be. Part of me also thought I might have just imagined it, so I found myself creeping slowly down the hall in the direction of the noise, trying to cup my hands over my genitals in case some stranger appeared suddenly. I peered out slowly into the front room where James had taken me so powerfully on the sofa the night before, only just letting me head poke out around the corner.

The door burst open and a strange woman came in, putting down her keys and shutting the door behind her as if she owned the place. I was terrified and thinking about bolting down the hall and hiding in the laundry room, throwing my clothes back on and then leaping out a window. However, my fear was so absolute that I remained motionless, trembling slightly.

The woman looked to also be a college student, somewhere in her early twenties like me and James. She was taller than me and slender but fit, with magenta-dyed hair that ran long on her left side and was buzzed short on the right. This combined with her tight, paint-splattered jeans and cropped t-shirt advertising some band I had never heard of gave me a kind of alt/punk vibe that was further intensified by her numerous piercings on her ears, septum, and navel. She was so cool to look at and such a surprise in James's overtly masculine apartment that I did realize I was staring until she looked straight at me and smiled.

"Who's ready for their walk?" she exclaimed, before making a tsk-tsk sound of disapproval. With a fresh rush of embarrassment, I realized I had lost control of my bladder and a steady stream of urine was leaking down onto the floor.

4: The Walk

"That is a very bad boy. Your master is not going to like that."

I tensed up again and the stream of urine cut off swiftly, but the deed had already been done. A few stray drops trickled down pathetically as my bladder strained in protest. I needed to finish peeing but couldn't.

The young woman crossed the front room and stepped over my puddle, leaving me cowering in the hallway as she went into the laundry room and came back with a roll of paper towels and some spray. She latched one finger around my collar and then yanked my head down so I was staring at my little puddle of shame.

"Bad boy. Bad. Boy. We don't pee inside our daddy's house."

The next thing I was being yanked by the collar back into the room where I had slept. This woman was surprisingly strong, although it all happened so fast I really couldn't resist. She led me past the chest to the cage in the corner I had only briefly noticed before, quickly sliding the bar that allowed the door to swing open.

"Go on," she said sternly. "Get in there."

Once I crouched down she let go of my collar and nudged my bare ass with the toe of her sneaker. Sensing what to do, I crawled inside and shuffled around as she quickly shut the door and slid the bar to seal me in. I was still ashamed and was now incredibly cramped in the small space, hunkering down on all fours. However, I was also learning how to play the part James obviously wanted me to play. The woman spoke in a gentler voice now:

"My name is Claudia, and I've been hired to take care of you while your master is out. I'm going to go clean up your little accident, and then I'll be right back, okay? I'll teach you how to be a good boy."

I nodded and she smiled, reaching in through the top of the cage to pat my head just how James had. She then disappeared back into the hallway for a few minutes, leaving me in the cage with my thoughts.

I wasn't sure how I felt about Claudia being there, seeing me naked and being hired to "take care of" me. I wondered if she lived here, or if she was related (even married!) to James. But I was also starting to understand the type of thing that was going on here, and I strongly suspected she was just being paid to stop by and make sure I was following the rules. James was using her like a pet-sitter; there didn't seem to be anything sexual to it. I was learning the rules to this game I had agreed to play.

Part of me wondered how I would feel if Claudia did try to do something sexual. What if she walked back in and grabbed my cock? I don't know that I consider myself to be completely gay, although I've never had sex with a woman before and usually find myself more attracted to guys. I did find her to be really hot, though, and I guess if something happened I would be okay with it if she was.

That didn't seem to be the case though. When Claudia came back into the room, she had a normal-looking dog leash.

"There!" she beamed. "All clean again. And if you're a good boy this afternoon, I might not even tell your daddy that you were naughty. Now . . ."

She opened up the cage and surveyed my trembling body critically before fastening one end of the leash to the hook on the back of my collar.

"Let's go for a little walk, and then maybe I'll explain a few things that weren't on your list."

I must've looked really worried when she tugged on the leash and tried to lead me toward the door because she paused and laughed.

"Don't worry about going outside, silly. Everyone here in the Grove will think this is normal. If anyone sees you, it will only be people like you, me, or James."

I remembered the weird interaction the night before with the guy James called Rich. Did he have a dog-boy living in his apartment? How could I not have known about this whole community? How many people were living lives like this? Nonetheless, I nodded again and agreed to be led outside.

The way Claudia held the leash meant I wasn't quite forced to walk on all fours, but did have to hunch down and not walk entirely upright. She led me out and away from the building to a quiet little garden area with a large, neatly maintained square of grass.

"Go on," she whispered. "Do your business."

My bladder did not need to be told twice. Playing along, I knelt down on all fours and lifted up one leg to let a long, solid stream of urine spray out of my still-sensitive junk. I closed my eyes in bliss, feeling the sunlight on my skin and letting that intermingle with the raw satisfaction of relieving myself. When I had finished, I shuffled away and looked at Claudia expectantly.

"Go on," she repeated. "You're not going to get another walk for a while, so make it count."

I knew what she meant, as I was now keenly aware of my bloated stomach and cramped bowels. I got right down to business, squatting over a fresh space of grass froggy-style, trying to spread my legs and relax my tired asshole. I expected to have to wait a lot longer, as I would normally be really uncomfortable taking a shit outside with someone watching, but the urge to go was suddenly so intense that I just let it fall out.

It was the best dump I've ever taken in my life. Sometimes I get really constipated, especially if I'm stressed or not eating right, but this felt as if my entire insides had just slid out in one perfect chunk. I felt thin and clean, as if I had just purged myself of some terrible toxins. I turned around and examined the enormous turd almost proudly.

Claudia fished a plastic bag out of her pocket and picked up my leavings, pinching her nose as she slung it into a nearby bin.

"That's a beautiful boy you have there," said a strange voice. "Do you mind if I pet him?"

I looked up to see a man of about forty with broad shoulders and a toned chest that nicely filled out his dark button-up shirt. He was looking at me intently through his square glasses. I quickly noticed that he, too, had a young man on a leash that was about my age and completely naked. The boy on the leash had long, platinum-blond hair that hung down over his eyes but the rest of his thin, pale body was entirely hairless, including his genitals. When he noticed I was looking at him, he sauntered over to me and began to inspect me as well, eyes lingering over my own groin. When this boy turned to present me his pink, gorgeously tight asscheeks, the broad-shouldered man laughed.

"I'd actually prefer if you didn't," Claudia was saying. "He's new and doesn't belong to me. He's still being trained and hasn't even been to the vet's yet."

The man replied, but I wasn't listening now. What had she said about the vet?

But the man was leading his boy away and Claudia was tugging at my leash to indicate it was time to go back to the apartment. I must have made some small noise because Claudia tutted affectionately.

"I know boy. You'll have a chance to play with the others soon. We've just got some other things to do first."

-I felt a lot more comfortable entering the apartment for the second time. The furnishings were already starting to feel familiar, and as soon as Claudia removed my leash I leapt onto the sofa happily and snuggled up where James had held me the night before. She laughed, sitting down nearby and stroking my spine gently with her long fingernails.

"You're adjusting surprisingly well to this," she murmured after a while. "You're pretty smart, which must be why James likes you."

I sat up and looked at her. She seemed suddenly distant, almost thoughtful.

"You do know you're entirely safe, right?" she asked. "You don't have to play along if you don't want to. If you have work or classes to go to, or are scared . . ."

"No," I said slowly. It felt strange to speak. "No, I want this. I feel . . . free somehow. Today's the 16th, right?"

She nodded.

"So I don't have work or classes. I'd be studying or moping by myself. Besides, doing all of this feels . . . good. I like it. I want to try more of it. I want to be here when James gets back."

She nodded again and cleared her throat, before becoming practical and businesslike again.

"Well, if that's the case we're going to have to get you ready for him. Go run and get the clothes he left for you out of the closet. Not the ones off the washer, the ones in the closet in your room. We're going to have to go out one more time today."

I nodded and hopped off the couch, scampering off down the hall to my room. In the closet, there were several identical sets of the same outfit in varying shades of brown, grey, and black. It was a one-piece jumpsuit, almost like a romper or overalls with a zip up the back that someone else would have to do for me. It did not have sleeves and the "shorts" were very, very short, so much so that I worried even my slight tuft of pubic hair would spill out. I noticed that while there were several pairs of sandals on the floor, I had been provided with no underwear of any kind. With a nervous gulp, I pulled a pale grey jumpsuit off its hanger.

It turned out I had nothing to be nervous about. The amazingly soft and thin sort of fleece-like material still felt like I was wearing nothing at all but made me look decent for public. No pubes were peeking out, and it turned out there was a neatly-contoured little sling on the inside that held my junk in place without too-obtrusive of a bulge. When I presented myself to Claudia, she smiled approvingly and zipped me up before leading me over to a full-length mirror. Once she buckled a belt around my waist, it really just looked like I was wearing a grey tank top and shorts, but I felt and looked amazing.

"I think you're ready to go see the vet!"

5: The Vet

The "vet" turned out to be a fancy sort of clinic on the other side of town. Claudia led me to her small, pale blue car and opened the door for me to climb into the front seat. The drive was about ten or fifteen minutes long and felt weirdly normal. We chatted about life at the university, how James and I worked in the library, music and stuff. It was exceedingly normal, and only further reinforced the idea that all of the "rules" I had to follow as a puppy-boy only applied within the gated confines of that apartment complex known as the Grove.

The clinic was in a very modern building that seemed like any other quiet medical practice. It was really similar to the place I went in middle school when I broke my arm playing soccer in middle school. There were automatic doors that led into a pleasant, clean room with tile floors and chairs to wait in and those side tables filled with the same generic magazines that always seem to crop up. Claudia motioned for me to go wait while she talked to the receptionist, a young man wearing a white waistcoat and a headset who spoke with her in hushed tones.

There were not many other people in the lobby with us. It was kind of weird to be in a waiting room like this without any screaming kids, but maybe that's what made it seem so quiet and peaceful. There were a few other guys my age, each sitting next to an older guardian, but there were two girls as well as a middle-aged woman sitting by herself. Occasionally, a nurse with a clipboard would come out and call a name.

Claudia finished talking to the receptionist and motioned for me to come over.

"You're a special patient," she said, using the voice she used earlier and not her normal voice from chatting in the car. "They're going to take a look at you right away."

I had assumed this would just be making sure I was healthy and clean of STDs and stuff, but I quickly got the impression that it was going to be a lot more than that. Two incredibly buff and tanned male nurses wearing face masks and almost bursting out of their green scrubs appeared and ushered me off down a hallway different from the one every else seemed to be going to. Claudia gave me a thumbs up, but didn't come along, opting instead to stay behind in the waiting room as my attendants guided me away through a labyrinth of white-tile and seemingly unmarked doors.

We eventually reached an open door that led into a pretty standard exam room with the kind of hospital bed covered in super thin paper. One of the nurses gestured for me to sit down as the other removed his mask and grabbed a clipboard.

"So, hey, I'm Nick."

He reached out and shook my hand. His grip was warm and powerful in a way that reminded me of James.

"I think you know generally why you're here at our special veterinary clinic, but I want to walk you through a couple of the details of what's been scheduled for you to get your consent. What you're about to face is a series of elective procedures that will change some cosmetic features of your body, but also change how your body performs certain functions. If you have any questions about anything or want me to slow down, just say so, okay?"