The funeral for Brandin Wayne Jessup was a media event that brought attendees from all over the world. It was duly covered by every major media outlet, and the paparazzi were everywhere. Thomas Dern and Celia Cole held court, and the grieving young actress was resplendent as she maintained her strong facade for the sake of the mourners, only breaking down as his casket was lowered into the rich dark earth of Forest Lawn Cemetery.

The funeral was an all-day affair, beginning with a small service at the cemetery's Unitarian chapel where dozens of Hollywood notables gave short testimonials on the life of this bright young star whose light was extinguished much too soon. The event then proceeding to a graveside ceremony where a non-denominational priest consecrated and hallowed the ground, giving a short endorsement on behalf of any religious entities to which the various attendees might adhere. In short, it was a sterile and calculated service designed neither to comfort nor to appease.

Matt Sharp raised his hand to gently massage the bridge of his nose in an attempt to dull the ache from the drill press that was threatening to erupt from behind his eyes. He knew the migraine was psychosomatic and a result of stress. The knowledge offered little comfort as he felt his wife's hand gently squeezing his own. He gave her a light squeeze back, to acknowledge her efforts.

"Not much longer, my love. We will find some suitable way to deal with it, soon."

"I know. I just wish things weren't in such disarray."

Danielle knew what he was referring to. With Gabrielle off dealing with her own personal ghosts, and Dana and Sloan not quite ready to step into her shoes, there was a large hole in the Sharp's family that could never truly be filled by a surrogate. There was a huge difference between someone who accepts a submissive role play as part of a game and one who embraces submission as a lifestyle. The former can serve many useful functions, and can be an enjoyable diversion, but the true submissive is a treasure to be nurtured, trained, and groomed into a family. This was her goal in recruiting the young couple, but they were not yet fully committed, and the weeks and months ahead would play a critical part in whether they were ever going to live up to their potential.

The public had such a slanted viewpoint on alternative lifestyles. Generations of religious, political, and social pressure had created a false reality of the lifestyle that she and her husband embraced. It was not sadomasochism (S/M) although there were some elements of both during certain sessions. It was not your typical bondage and discipline fetish, but again, it held elements of both. Domination and submission (D/s) is about power in a relationship. One person accepts the power and responsibility of total control of physical and emotional pleasure for another person who gives up that control by free will.

There have been countless studies of the psychology of power in sexual role play. It seems that the only fact that they all agree on is that every successful relationship has an exchange of power as one participant succumbs to the will of another. Traditionally, the male has been considered the dominant in this exchange, but there has been a lot of evidence that this is not true at all. The subtleties of who actually has control can be difficult to ascertain even for those who participate.

For example, it is a common belief that during fellatio, the submissive party is the one who is giving oral satisfaction to the other. Recent studies, however, show that many women (as well as men) in this 'submissive' role experience a strong sense of power over the other. The debate over power exchange during various sex acts has become a flashpoint issue among those who study human sexuality. With no definitive evidence to support any viewpoint, most of those who engage in this lifestyle merely shrug their shoulders as if to say 'whatever....it works'.

A small smile was barely discernible at the corners of her mouth as she considered her prey. Dana and Sloan Taylor were the perfect blend of innocence, naïveté, and submission. They were absolutely adorable, and her loins began to dampen as she considered their future. She had some very specific plans for the young couple. For Matt, it was all about the endgame, but for Danielle, the chase was more than half the fun. She knew that the couple were a long way from being broken to the life of submission, but she took great pleasure in that knowledge.

The young couple in question were not at Brandin Jessup's funeral. Each was buried deep into their own thoughts as they drove Dana's beat up Toyota Camry across town toward their small home in Venice, CA. For his own part, Sloan was struggling to come to terms with his actions at the Sharps' party. Yes, a method actor must throw himself into a role by full immersion. Yes, a method actor must play the role as if it was his own reality. He knew this. He had always prided himself on his ability to assimilate any role. So did that mean he was not guilty of engaging in a homosexual act with Matt Sharp?

He tried to be objective in his appraisal. He had done what he had trained himself to do. He had been acting a role. After all, many heterosexual actors had played gay on stage and on screen. An actor could not afford to pick and choose his roles at the beginning of his career. His only hope was to establish himself, his legitimacy as an actor, and then have the power to control what roles he might play.

This thought had continued to swirl around in both his conscious and subconscious mind. It should have given him the comfort and the gravitas to speak out to his bride and assuage any doubts that she might have about the sexuality of the man she had married. It should have given him the moral high ground to dismiss any concerns, except for one lingering issue.

He had liked it.

For her part, Dana was also struggling with demons of her own. She felt enormously guilty about her part in Danielle's plan to feminize Sloan to get him the role in Soft Kill. She also felt guilty for her feelings. Deep in the darkest recesses of her heart, she had to confess that she had loved it. Seeing Sloan in angelic regalia at the costume party had gotten her so hot. When you add to that Danielle's obvious intentions for them both she was almost reduced to a puddle of desire.
She had wanted this. Wanted it as much as anything she had ever felt before. Feeling the power that emanated like pheromones from Matt and Danielle had kept her in a heightened state of sexual desire for weeks. It was all she could do to keep from climbing all over Sloan at the party. Only the strength of Danielle's will had managed to halt her. When she had seen her husband on his knees, swallowing Matt's hard and throbbing member, only Danielle's soft caresses had kept her from joining Sloan in paying homage to Matt Sharp's turgid member.

The fact that Danielle had not allowed either of them to fully consummate the sexual tableau was so frustrating that she was still squirming with desire. On the one hand, her body was crying out for sexual release. On the other, she took a cruel and perverse pleasure in allowing Danielle to deny them that release. How would Sloan react when he realized his own bride's role in what had been done to him?