My journey home from Sunningdale was plagued with worry. A thousand and one questions were buzzing around my brain. They were a mix of questions relating to me, but mostly they were to do with Mia. When the train stopped at Staines, I knew that professionally, I was about to get very much out of my depth but there was more, far more.

I finally admitted to myself that I fancied Mia by the time the train stopped at Clapham Junction. I was so preoccupied with my thoughts that I only just got off the train in time as the doors started to close. As I headed for my London Overground train to Shepherds Bush, I decided to at least get home before I made another mistake and fell under a train or a bus.

The problem was that sitting opposite me on the train to West London, was what appeared to be a Japanese schoolgirl wearing much the same clothes as Mia had worn earlier. I did a double-take just to make sure that it wasn't actually Mia. It wasn't so I buried my head in a copy of that mornings, 'Metro' free newspaper.

Thankfully, she didn’t get off the train at my stop but that experience only added to my self-doubts.

---

While I waited for my microwave meal to nuke itself warm, I tried to quash those thoughts about Mia. She was a potential patient and I had an ethical reason to maintain my distance from her.

As much as I tried, I couldn't settle down once I'd gotten home, so I started writing down a list of questions about Mia in an email to her parents. I finally pressed send, at just after 01:30 the following morning. I was tired but couldn't sleep. Thankfully, it was the weekend, so I could lie in as long as I'd liked in the morning.

I was awakened a little after nine by a banging on the door to my flat.

"Go away," I muttered, but they didn't do as I asked so, I had to get up.

Before I could answer the door, I had to get decent because I normally sleep in a nightdress. Today, it was one of my favourite kimono style. I threw on a sweatshirt and a pair of trousers and opened the door.

It was Mia.

“Mia? What are you doing here?”

She said something in Japanese and dashed past me into my home. Reluctantly, I closed the door and followed her into the kitchen.

“Sorry. I spoke Japanese for so long that it has sort of become my default language.”

"That's all right. Why are you here, and how did you find my address? Do your parents know where you are?"

"I'm not a little child. I'm an adult, and no, they don't know where I am. They were at some function last night and didn't get home until three. I snuck out at first light and walked to the station, and … here I am. Dad had your file on his desk. That's how I knew where to come."

I’d sort of recovered my senses a bit.

“Coffee?”

“Tea. I only drink tea.”

“Ok, I’ll put the things on to brew while you tell me what you are doing here.”

Mia sat down on one of the two kitchen stools, that I possessed and watched me put the kettle on and get the coffee percolator going.

“Ok,” I said when I’d placed a mug of tea on the table in front of her.

“Start at the beginning and explain what happened from the time I left yesterday until you arrived here today.

"After you left, Mum and Dad got into a big row. That isn't uncommon. It was about what it always is, money or rather the lack of it. Dad's business is not what it once was. Being away most of the time hid that from me but since I've been back, it has been clear that there isn't a lot of money coming in. They've even sold a David Hockney picture that has been around for years, and years. I did some searching and found that it sold for just under fifty thousand. Then there was a Henry Moore statue thing that went for eighty thousand dollars in New York."

Mia took a deep breath.

"Anyway, they rowed about the lack of income and me. They, don't want to pay you for more than a couple of visits. Then they want to get me under a shrink at the local clinic with a view of getting me some treatment. That would give them control of my money."

“Money?”

“Yeah. My Gran… Dad's Mum and my Mum never really got on. Mum loves shopping in places like Bond Street. Gran left me everything in her will. Because I was studying abroad, I signed a power of attorney giving them control of my estate should I be deemed incapable of managing my own affairs.”

Her words hit home. I’d been played by this innocent-looking woman that was sitting in front of me.

“You tricked your parents and then me just to bring this to a head?”

"Sorry, but I had to. It wasn't all an act though. I love dressing like I was yesterday. It just makes me happy, but things came to a head sooner than I realised. As I said, they went out last night to some event where Dad was hopefully going to seal a record deal for one of his artists.
When they returned, Dad was blaming Mum for getting pissed and coming on to the manager of this band of tuneless babes that have to rely on autotune to even sound half decent. Those were his words. That was it as far as I was concerned. I left early this morning and came here to see you and to tell you everything. I'm so sorry for misleading you like I did yesterday."

Then she reached over and took my hand.

"I had it all planned out, but when you started brushing my hair, I just felt good. Please don't get me wrong, but I got the feeling that you felt good doing it."

She'd got me there. Picking up the hairbrush was a spur of the moment thing, but I'd enjoyed the simple act of brushing someone else's hair.

“Was what you told me about this initiation a bunch of lies?”

Mia shook her head.
"It was all true. I'd always loved dressing up as a young child. Mum's never-ending stream of designer clothes was pure heaven for me. Then to get the chance to become one of the groups of Anime girls when I was in Japan was perfect. I felt like I’d gone to heaven."

The smile disappeared from her face.

“Is something wrong?”

"Yes. It was only later that I found out that we were expected to perform for businessmen during the holidays."

“By perform, you mean have sex with them?”

“No, in some respects, worse.”

Mia dived into the large sports bag that she’d brought with her and pulled out her phone. She did some magic on it and then held it so that I could see.

"We were expected to become statuesque dolls. That's where I had my first experience of latex and… bondage. The bondage was mostly Japanese Rope Bondage. Very ornate and designed to incapacitate the victim but without pain that is normally associated with bondage."

She started a video playing. It was pure porn but without the sex act. At least, that is what I thought as it played out before my very eyes.
The scene showed Mia putting on a Latex bodysuit and being bound and gagged by a masked woman. At the end of the prelude, there were four others just like her standing at the corners of a large table while a bunch of middle-aged Japanese businessmen ate, got drunk and generally misbehaved. All four living dolls were dressed as babies and even had dummies in their mouths. Their legs and arms had been bound, with copious amounts of rope making it impossible for them to move.

“That’s so… sad.”

"It is, but it paid handsomely, and there was no abuse or sex."

“No woman should have to go through that sort of thing.”

“Not even for five thousand pounds a weekend?”

I didn’t need to think.

“No, not even for that.”

Then I added,
“This video, is it on any of the porn hubs?”

"No, but you can find it if you search with the right terms."

“Then there is a chance that your parents won’t find out about it?”

The colour drained from Mia’s face.

“They know about some of it. When they came to Japan to see me graduate, one of these businessmen approached Dad and offered to buy me and for me to become his Japanese wife.”

“What do you mean ‘Japanese wife’?”

“Oh, to have my eyes and nose done so that I would look like a Japanese woman.”

“You said that as if it would not be a problem?”

"After a while, you get fed up with being the foreigner, and outsider even if you speak the language perfectly. To overcome this, I started trying to make myself look more Japanese, and it worked. That led to me being invited into their equivalent of a sorority. I was their first non-Japanese member."

"If you loved that life so much, why didn't you stay in Japan after you graduated?"

Mia laughed.
"You don't know Japanese society as I do. I could be expected to marry a company man who might be twenty years older than me if I wanted to get anywhere. No thanks. Those weekends might have been lucrative but were a real turn off for me when it comes to the males of their society."

Then Mia asked,
“Do you want me to make you up like I was yesterday? I know that you liked it.”

How did she know that?

“Won’t your parents be beating a path to my door any moment now?”

"Nah. Mum has booked to spend the day at the Spa. Dad is going to the races just down the road, at Ascot. They probably won't realise I'm not there until tomorrow."

I needed some time to think.

“Can you make us some breakfast while I get properly dressed?”
Mia grinned.

“Oh goody. Toyah is making herself beautiful for me!”

“Nothing of the sort. In case you hadn’t noticed, you woke me up.”
I didn’t wait for a reply as I headed for my bedroom.

Normally, it would take me just a few minutes to get dressed but this was not a normal Saturday and Mia would be expecting to see Toyah rather than Vincent. I left applying any makeup until later. I debated re-attaching my fake breasts but decided just to wear a bra with them inside. I needed more than one dose of caffeine to get my thinking straight. I knew one thing deep down inside and that Mia was trouble. My problem was that I liked her. She might be a bit strange, but inside there was a good woman.

I stepped into an old skirt that I only ever wore around the house. It had seen better days, but I liked it, and was comfortable, and at the moment, that was more important than looks. My closet was a bit empty of clean tops so I rummaged and found my old tunic top. This was good as it had pockets for things. The lack of pockets was one thing I hated about most clothes made for women. Designers seem to think that we carry our handbags everywhere we go, even inside our homes. Sometimes, just being able to put something in a pocket like a phone makes life so much easier. A quick brush of my hair, and I was done for now.

Mia had made some more tea and was busy with some toast. She'd found the pot of Blackcurrant Jam in my fridge although, I nearly tut-tutted when she put vegetable spread on the toast and then used the same knife to get the Jam from the pot. Thankfully, there wasn't much jam left to go moldy from the bits of spread and toast that would inevitably get left behind in the jam jar.

I tried to stop myself from being so picky, and downright negative, but the sight of Mia made that very hard to do.

“I need to send an email to your parents,” I said as I sat at the table.

Mia stopped spreading jam and looked at me.
“Why?”

“I’m going to tell them I can’t work for them any longer and that they don’t have to pay me for yesterday.”

“Why? We were getting along so well?”

“Conflict of Interest.”

“I don’t understand?”

"Let me send the email, and then I'll tell you."

I opened up my laptop and quickly composed the email. I read it twice and made a couple of minor changes before hitting 'send'. I closed the laptop and put it back on the counter.

“There is a conflict of interest because of this.”

I leaned forward and kissed her. After a moment of surprise, she responded.

“I wasn’t expecting that,” said a slightly breathless Mia when we broke apart.

"Me neither, but seeing you making breakfast tipped me over the edge."

We ate our toast in silence. Both of us were thinking about what to do next.

“What do we do now?” asked Mia as she finished off her tea.

I just didn't want this moment to end. I could imagine myself sitting across the breakfast table from her for the rest of my life. Then reality struck. Which version of me would that be?

“I don’t know. Perhaps we should get to know each other a bit better?”

Mia grinned.
“Like doing the washing and cleaning together then?”

I laughed.

“Not exactly. Perhaps we could go out together and do some window shopping. That way we can see what each other likes and dislikes. I need to get some food in for starters. My almost empty fridge is a dead giveaway.”

Mia didn't respond, so I gave her a prompt.

“What about you? What do you want to do?”

She sighed.

“I had all these grand ideas then… then you went and kissed me.”

“Yeah, life sucks at times.”

"It was nice if a little unexpected."

I tried again.
“What did you bring in your bag? It seems rather a lot for a brief visit?”

“Who said that it is going to be brief?”

“What if I’d not been here when you rang? What then?”

Mia shrugged her shoulders.
“I didn’t think things through very well at all did I?”

Mia was perfectly right. What made it worse was that I was doing just the same. I was letting my feelings for Mia get in the way of everything else.

Together, we tidied up the flat, and I began to get dressed. Mia came into my room and held up an outfit.

“Will you wear this for me?”

It was a replica of her Japanese Schoolgirls outfit from my first meeting with her.

I was stunned for a few seconds. Then I took it from her.
“What about you?”

“I have mine with me. We can look like sisters.”

“I don’t have a wig that is even remotely right for this look.”

Mia laughed.
“I have one of those as well.”

"You thought of everything, didn't you?"

"Nearly. I left my under-suit at home."

“Isn’t that a bit dangerous? Won’t your parents find it?”

Once again, Mia laughed.
"That place is pretty old, circa 1860. There is a back staircase that had been boarded up, in the 1960s. I found it when I was a child. Mum didn't like me dressing up in her clothes, so she used to lock her bedroom door to keep me away but being the inquisitive sort, I found a way to get into her bedroom. That old staircase leads into all the main bedrooms and was used by servants in the old days..”

I smiled.
“And that’s where you keep your stash of things, that you’d rather not them find?”

“Yeah. Several suits and all my bondage gear.”

"What? You have your own set of bondage gear?"

“Well… some of it. The rest is in storage in Tokyo.”
Mia didn’t hesitate in showing me photos of her collection of items.

“Even this is more than the ‘Play Room’ in Fifty Shades?”

"Mere amateurs. That apology for a series of books and films is strictly for amateurs. This is a serious bit of kit. It wasn't cheap either but the earnings from a couple of my bondage weekends easily paid for it."

I looked at Mia, and her whole body was alive. It was as if she was a different person.

“This is the real Mia, isn’t it?”

“Mistress Oki at your service should you so desire. Oki means ‘Master’ or in this case ‘Mistress Mistress’.”

Mia bowed.
A shiver went down my spine. Here was someone who could look like a sweet innocent schoolgirl but, was in reality a Dominatrix.

“Is that what you want to do with your life?”

“Something like that. Is that so wrong?”

“It is hardly conventional, is it?”

“Humiliating men is hardly mainstream, is it?”

Mia laughed.

"No men. Only women are allowed, and they are not humiliated in any way. I'd train them to be better lovers and to give as good as they get in bed with their lover be they male or female. They would be the perfect companion for the modern man. They would be able to hold their own in social gatherings and give their man the time of his life in bed. Some of that would involve a bit of dominating but in a loving way."

“What about me? Do you want to tie me up?”

“You are different. Ever since I saw you at the club, I have been confused. Part of me wants to let you experience some of the Japanese Bondage I’ve been taught but since we met, I just want to be with you.”

The words 'be with you', threw me. As far as I knew, those three words had never been said about me or to me in the past.

I was rather uneasy. Mia sensed this.

“Lets’ get dressed and made up and we can go out together as friends.”

I hoped that being friends would suffice for a few hours at least. Deep down, I knew that I wanted more but was not sure what ‘more’ was.
I disappeared off to get a shower and have a shave. I heard Mia speaking Japanese to someone but didn’t think anything more of it. All I could think of was spending the day with her.

[to be continued]