PREVIOUS PART

After a while, Hsien realized she was slowly drifting off to sleep. A sudden thought reminded her that if she allowed that to happen, she'd miss the opportunity to take full advantage of the potion she'd put into Cobalt's tea. She roused herself somewhat violently back into full consciousness. Her gentle purring ended with a huff and a growl, and her chest heaved forward as she kicked one of her feet. Cobalt, shocked, fell back onto his rear.

"Cobalt," Hsien said with mock disappointment, "your massage nearly put me to sleep."

"I-is that wrong, Hsien-Ko?"

"I asked for a simple foot rub, not to be lulled into slumber-land." Hsien got up off the couch and knelt down to look at Cobalt closely. The kimera looked back at her with nervous eyes.

In his position on the floor, Cobalt instinctively leaned back and away from her stare. "Please forgive me, Hsien-Ko. I only wanted you to be happy."

Hsien put her hand up to rub Cobalt's cheek and then touched the underside of his chin, behind his gray goatee. "You like to make me happy, don't you?"

"Making you happy makes me happy, Hsien-Ko."

"Then I will forgive you if you promise to continue doing your best to make me happy, without questioning me."

"I promise, Hsien-Ko. I promise."

"I'm very glad to hear that, Cobalt." Hsien smiled. Then her hand clamped around his goatee and she tugged at it slightly. Cobalt's eyes grew wide again. Hsien leaned in almost close enough for their noses to touch. "As such, I would also be glad if you acted more formally toward me. It would put me at ease, and it would help you better remember your place."

Cobalt gulped. "Yes, very well, Miss Hsien-Ko. Cobalt shall follow your instructions with the utmost formality."

Hsien smiled, and seeing her smile made Cobalt feel much better himself. "Thank you, Cobalt. Now, let's get up off this floor, shall we?"

Hsien stood up and Cobalt picked himself up. Hsien looked him over with an exaggerated frown, which Cobalt noticed easily.

"Is something the matter, Miss Hsien-Ko?" he asked nervously.

"No, nothing...well...perhaps it doesn't matter." Hsien continued looking over Cobalt's body with disdain.

Cobalt spoke more assertively. "If it upsets Miss Hsien-Ko it matters a great deal. Does Miss Hsien-Ko disapprove of Cobalt's appearance?"

Hsien's smile returned. "Well, if you're so eager to please, Cobalt, maybe there won't be any harm in asking. Those clothes don't look appropriate on you."

"Does Miss Hsien-Ko wish Cobalt to disrobe?" Cobalt began lifting his tee-shirt. Hsien-Ko put up her hands.

"No, not exactly. There's another outfit I'd like you to put on. Wait right here."

Hsien went into her bedroom, and Cobalt stayed true to her orders and remained rooted to the spot until she returned, carrying a black and white dress on a hanger. It had a lace-up corset, collar, built-in apron across the front of the skirt, and white lace trim all around. In her other hand Hsien held some other small white garments.

"Will you try on this outfit, please? I think you would look much better in it."

Cobalt blushed. "Miss Hsien-Ko, that appears to be a maid's dress...but Cobalt is a man."

Hsien frowned again. "You promised me you wouldn't question anything I asked of you. Are you breaking that promise, Cobalt?"

Cobalt hunched down a bit. "No, Miss Hsien-Ko. Cobalt would not dream of questioning you. Cobalt will put on the dress immediately."

Hsien-Ko smiled, handing the ensemble to Cobalt. "Good, and I will help you into it so that it's done up right."

Hsien helped Cobalt change into the outfit, which came complete with white lace panties, thigh-high white stockings, a silky white chemise, and white cotton arm warmers that went up past his elbows and covered his hands to the knuckle. An elastic band wrapped around his index fingers kept the gloves from sliding up his arms. The stockings were tied at both knee and ankle with laced cuffs, allowing the hooves to remain free.

The main dress had a built-in apron flanked by black puffy shoulders. An accompanying choker was tied around his neck with a thin red ribbon. Hsien wrapped a black corset around his stomach and laced it. She pulled the string tighter than Cobalt would have liked, but he put up no fuss. The petticoat only fell to mid-thigh. Its front had a built-in apron draped over it in an upside-down semicircle that was itself delicately laced.

Hsien stepped back and looked upon her dolled-up roommate in satisfaction. Cobalt stood in a proper pose, with his arms in front of him and his hands pushing down on the front of the apron. His lanky frame looked even daintier thanks to the tight corset.

"You look splendid, dear. Just splendid. But let's do something with your hair. Come." Hsien ordered Cobalt to sit on the ottoman, then went to retrieve a pair of scissors and carefully clipped off the kimera's long chin braid. "That will just get in your way," she explained, then walked around behind Cobalt. "Stare straight ahead and don't move, please.

Cobalt obeyed, and felt his long white hair being tugged and manipulated.

"Loose hair, especially such long hair as yours, must be kept tidy," Hsien-Ko said. Cobalt sat patiently, his hands folded in his lap, for several long minutes. He felt immensely happy to be given such attention by his close friend. He was sure he looked wonderful in the dress she had picked out for him, and could barely wait to see himself in a mirror.

"And let's put a couple of these on you to finish it off..." Hsien muttered. Cobalt felt his horns being pulled slightly, but again, did not move or speak.

"All done!" Hsien said after a time. "Stand up, let's see you."

Cobalt stood up and felt a heavy rope slap against his back. Hsien looked him up and down. "Oh, you must see this!" she said eagerly. "Come, come."

She took Cobalt by the hand and the two walked into Hsien's bedroom, where a full-length mirror stood. Cobalt saw himself in the reflection, tall and wide in the shoulders, but generally very feminine. A thin waist, dainty hands, and a proper subservient posture. His hair had been braided. Hsien started two braids above either eye, sloping down along the hairline, just above his ears, and merging in the back at the nape of the neck into one long, thick white braid. The tugging he had felt at his horns proved to have been the tying of two dainty red ribbons decorating his horns near their tips.

He could barely take his eyes off his reflection, but he knew he must address Hsien properly. "Cobalt is now so beautiful, Miss Hsien-Ko. It is an honor to be given such a pretty makeover. Thank you so much." He bowed low to her.

Hsien looked up at her roommate and smiled. "Yes, you are indeed a beautiful maid, fit to serve my every desire."

Cobalt looked strangely at her. "Maid?"

"Of course. You desire to make me happy in every way. You made a promise to that effect."

Things were becoming confusing. The only tangible thought Cobalt could come up with was to let Hsien make her point. "Yes, that is correct, Miss Hsien-Ko."

"Then by definition that makes you my maid, yes?"

Deep inside Cobalt's mind, he knew something was going wrong. Hsien had done something to him. Again. But he could only hold onto that thought for an instant before his brain gave up trying to fight her words. His mind wanted to relax. To stop thinking for himself. "Er... Yes, of course, Miss Hsien-Ko. That must be true. Cobalt is your obedient maid."

Hsien pinched Cobalt's furry cheek. He blushed brightly. "Very good, maid. You are so precious. Now come, it's time for you to prove you know how to make tea properly."

Hsien took a seat on the couch, once again flipping to a channel to find a good prime-time show. Cobalt, meanwhile, busied himself in the kitchen making a fresh batch of tea. He heated the water and laid out two fresh teacups on their saucers. He placed an Earl Grey teabag in each one, then prepared a tray to serve them on.

From her seat, Hsien heard the whistle of the kettle and called to Cobalt. "Maid, please ready some crackers to have with the tea."

"Yes, Miss Hsien-Ko," Cobalt said as he poured the tea carefully into the cups. As the bags steeped, he took a box of crackers out of a cabinet and placed them in a neat circle on a dish. Then in a flash of inspiration, he diced a few pieces of cheese and piled them in a pyramid in the center. He placed the cups, cracker plate, the bowl of sugar cubes, the bottle of honey, and two napkins folded into triangles on the tray and carried it out.

Hsien watched approvingly as Cobalt carried the tray into the living room, walking pigeon-toed and holding a straight posture. He leaned down and lowered the tray in front of Hsien-Ko. "Here is your tea, Miss Hsien-Ko."

"Why, thank you, maid," Hsien said pleasantly as she took her cup.
Cobalt laid the tray on the coffee table and sat with his hands folded in his lap on the couch next to her.

"Are you going to drink your tea?" Hsien asked, blowing on her cup.

"It would not be polite to begin drinking before the mistress."

Hsien smiled. "You have learned very well, maid. Quite the far cry from my ungrateful roommate, Cobalt. He could learn a few things from you."

Cobalt blinked. "Apologies for the correction, Miss Hsien-Ko, but this maid is Cobalt. They are the same person."

Hsien sipped her tea to test its temperature, then shot a smirk at Cobalt. "Don't be silly. You aren't Cobalt. Cobalt's going to be gone for quite a while, I think. In the mean time, the two of us are going to have ourselves quite a bit of fun." She sipped some more of her tea with a grin.

The maid formerly known as Cobalt looked confused, then shook his head as if tossing off an unwanted thought. He smiled. "Very well, Miss Hsien-Ko. Does mistress require sugar and honey with her tea?"

"No," Hsien said between sips. "Not at all."

THE END

Hsien-Ko owned by  yurikokinai
Cobalt owned by me