Posted by Sawney Beane on May 10, 2006 at 21:56:31:
The Collected Works of Sawney Beane: Volume #18
A CERTAIN RELUCTANCE
by Sawney Beane
29 December 1994
1,739 words
DISTRIBUTION NOTICE and DISCLAIMER: Sawney Beane requests that any distribution of this work of fiction remain within the realm of social responsibility. This story is suitable neither for minors nor for the seeming majority of adults who have difficulty distinguishing fantasy from reality. It is pure fantasy, which means that, for whatever reason, someone has found it interesting to think about the events depicted herein. It does not in any way mean that the author would like to see this fantasy become reality, so if you are the type of person who might be swayed into doing something irrational by reading a work of fiction, the author respectfully requests that you decline to read further.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Sawney Beane, originally a native of Edinburgh, lived for twenty-five years in a cave on the coast of County Galloway, subsisting on the flesh of unfortunate travellers, roughly a thousand of them all told. He and his wife raised a large family of eight sons, six daughters, eighteen grandsons, and fourteen granddaughters. Eventually, the family was captured, and the whole lot was brutally and unjustifiably tortured and executed without trial. Since his death in the early 17th century, Beane has reformed his ways and now confines his atrocities to his literary endeavours.
WARNING: This story contains scenes of snuff for the purposes of cannibalism of a non-consenting female. If you find such things offensive, please steer clear; you have been warned.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: This story was inspired solely by the sentence "I understand that you have a certain reluctance...." Oddly enough, that evolved into a fairly interesting story. This another psychological photograph of a girl about to meet her immutable fate. I like it well enough, but it's not particularly memorable.
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She looked around for a means of escape, but her search was in vain. Behind her was only the big stone kitchen fireplace and the large oven built into the sturdy wall. To her left was a long wooden table and beyond that an enormous multi-paned window. It would be difficult to leap the table and plunge through the window. Not to mention that beyond was only a fifteen-foot drop and the burly gardener, who would be only too ready to drag her back into the kitchen. On her right was a solid wall lined with pots and pans. Before her was the door, a big wooden thing that creaked annoyingly, but her way was blocked by an old woman with an enormous carving knife. Perhaps she could overpower the woman at the cost of a few scratches, but the sentries on the other side of the door would be a different matter altogether. Her only hope, if it could be called that, was to talk her way out of this sticky situation.
"For the last time, girl, get your clothes off and get onto that table," the old woman growled at her.
"Please, ma'am, there's some mistake," she plead with as much humility as she could muster, "I'm not supposed to be here."
"The Master bought you with real money at the market," returned the old cook, "you belong here, so do as I say."
"But ma'am, I wasn't supposed to be at the market at all. I was kidnapped." This was true enough.
The old woman scowled. "That's not my affair, girl. You're here now, so get those clothes off!"
"But it's a mistake! I'm not that kind of girl."
"It's no mistake, girl. Obey me now!" The old woman waved the knife menacingly as if the price of disobedience could possibly be higher than that of obedience.
She lost her forced civility and blurted at the woman, "What would you know? You're just an old kitchen servant! I must speak with your master!"
"He's your master too now, and you're nothing but a pork chop, so get your behind onto that table this minute!" She spoke the words with a tinge of vengeful satisfaction.
"But I must speak with the Master!"
"He's busy. You'll meet him in a few hours."
"Right! After you take my insides out and stuff me with your rancid dressing and stick me in that oven for a while? I need him now!" The girl's skin crawled as she imagined this fate.
The old woman smiled a very unpleasant smile. "You need only obey," she said slowly and firmly. She grabbed the girl's arm and tried to forcibly remove her dress. With one hand occupied by the knife, she could only succeed in ripping the cloth a bit. The girl's screams resonated throughout the mansion.
"What's all this!" shouted the Master as he burst into the kitchen a few moments later. "How can I concentrate with this horrible din! Can't you do anything, woman?" He scowled at the old cook and took the girl by the elbow and sat her down in the wooden chair next to the fireplace. "Is there a problem?" he asked her.
"Yes, I don't want to do it."
"Do what, dear?" His face was understanding. From her little experience with him, the girl knew that her was a little bit clever but mostly fairly dim. In any case, he was big, strong, and good-looking. He dressed as a gentleman and showed off his fabulous wealth to any who could be persuaded to take notice. She thoroughly disliked him and knew that his concern was not genuine.
"You know very well what I don't want to do. It's all a mistake. I wasn't supposed to be in the market. I was kidnapped." She could not bring herself to say what it was she dreaded.
"Oh, yes, that. Well, I'm afraid there's nothing to be done. I've invited the Mayor and his daughter for dinner, and there's no time to get another main dish. I'm afraid you'll just have to go along with it. OK?"
"No! I can't. You've plenty of cattle and pigs. Use them."
"Ah, but such a bill of fare would not suitably impress the Mayor. You see, I seek his daughter's hand in marriage. Got to impress the old man, you know." He said this last with a conspiratorial smile.
"Why should I give my life to impress your father-in-law to be?"
"Because you're my property, and I bought you with a substantial amount of money, which I do not intend to waste."
"But it was a mistake! I was not supposed to be a market girl!"
The Master placed his hands on the girl's shoulders and stroked her long blonde hair. She noticed that he was admiring her face and body. "My dear, no one is supposed to be a market girl. Did you think people are lining up to be in your situation?" He said this kindly but with very firm undertones.
The girl began to realize that what he said was true, but this was too horrible to imagine. "You mean..."
"I'm afraid so. But it's not so bad."
"Not so bad? So many people slaughtered against their will just to feed arrogant aristocrats like you?" She wrinkled her face in disgust.
"Yes, it's a shame, but they taste so good. Now, please cooperate with my dear old cook." He stood up and backed away from her a few paces. She remained sitting.
"But I don't want to die."
"I understand that you have a certain reluctance to do this, but please don't be so selfish. I'm sorry you have to make a bit of a sacrifice, but it really is important that I marry the Mayor's daughter. Please try to think of concerns greater than your own pitiful life."
"My own pitiful life?" she repeated with surprise at his blindness.
"Well, I'm sorry to be harsh, but what were you going to do with it? Surely you don't expect to amount to much. But I guarantee that you'll be well regarded on my dinner table." He spoke as if this made sense.
She had nothing to say to this, so she stared at him incredulously.
"Now, will you please cooperate?"
"No, I have an idea. Marry me instead!" It was a desperation plea, but it was worth a try.
He smiled condescendingly and said, "Impossible I'm afraid."
She stood and held her body as alluringly as possible in her long dress. "Is she better-looking than me?'
He looked wistfully out the window. "Sadly, no. She's rather plain actually."
"Then why do you want her?"
"Because she's a lady."
"And I'm not?"
He flashed her another condescending smile. "You're a woman or maybe just a girl. She's a lady."
"So even though she's plain, she's better than me because I'm common."
"Yes," he replied frankly.
The girl failed to hide her disgust. "Still, I refuse to allow this."
"It's not really a matter of what you allow. Please don't fight against your destiny."
"It's not my destiny!"
"Do you see any means of escaping it?"
"No, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't struggle against it."
"Of course it does, now please remove your clothing and obey the cook," he said through clenched teeth.
She stood her ground. She knew there was no hope of escape. She was doomed, but she was not going to go willingly. Still, struggle seemed pointless.
"Here, I'll help you." She closed her eyes and imagined a better world as he stepped behind her and began to unfasten the strings holding her dress on. She did not resist. The upper half of the dress fell forward as he pulled her arms out of the sleeves. He pushed the whole dress down to her ankles and began to unfasten her bra. When the article fell from her chest and dropped to the floor, he stared enraptured at her for a few minutes before throwing his arms around her waist and pressing his face into her breasts. "What a specimen! With breasts like those and flawless skin like that, the Mayor's daughter will be engaged to me before nightfall!"
She arched her back and felt her ribs pressing against her skin. "Such a waste!" she mumbled as she pushed him away roughly.
He was genuinely puzzled. "What's a waste, dear?"
"Life's a waste," she said quietly as she pushed her panties and stockings to the floor in one fluid movement. "For twenty-one years I try to be moral and good; I try to avoid danger; I plan for the future. For the sake of the future I deny myself pleasure, cling to my virginity, eat vegetables instead of candy." She climbed onto the table and placed herself firmly on her back with her arms crossed under her breasts. "What does it get me? I end up as an imbecile's engagement gift!" She stared out the window at a tree in the distance. "I hope you and your precious plain lady bride choke on a bone." She closed her eyes and resolved to never open them again.
The Master seemed unfazed by her speech. "So we're settled now? You'll obey? I really do appreciate your sacrifice."
She did not reply, but she did not resist as he uncrossed her arms and placed them at her sides. His work done, the Master strode satisfied from the room.
The girl could hear the old cook sharpening a knife, and the sound made her skin crawl. She rubbed the sole of one foot with the toes of the other and relished the pleasant feeling. She felt her arched back and pleasantly protruding ribs, but her stomach seemed an empty pit, and her chest seemed to be under a heavy weight. Her mouth was dry, and she could not dismiss her horrible sadness. For the first time, she was experiencing life without hope. Her once so alluring future now appeared to her as a precipice beyond which the darkness spread out to infinity. Her fingers touched the soft skin of her thighs, and the sunlight shone red through her eyelids. Her body felt heavy and pressed painfully against the hard wood of the table. She became aware that the sharpening noise had ceased, and the floor creaked as the old woman approached the table. There was nothing left for the girl to do but wait.