Chapter 1: Exposition
Iro twirled his pen in his hand, tapping it rhythmically against the coffee cup. The sun had dipped below the skyscrapers, leaving the office lit by harsh, white fluorescent tubes. It was a stark contrast to the daylight, but the way the light bounced off the polished surface of the mahogany table was almost as inviting.
"Are you okay?" Elizabeth leaned in, her blue eyes squinting in the glare.
"You've been doing that all day. Is something on your mind, or are you just enjoying the acoustics?"
Iro chuckled, setting the pen down. "Just trying to psych myself up. You know how much this contract means."
Elizabeth nodded, her long, light brown hair cascading over her shoulders. "We've got this, Iro. We're a great team."
Iro looked at her, really looked at her. She was right - they worked well together. Her intelligence was as captivating as her beauty, and her submission to him was... intoxicating.
But he knew better than to let his feelings cloud his judgment. There was too much at stake.
It had been two years since Elizabeth had gotten him fired from his job. He had used the mirror on her as revenge, and now they'd created a balance. She was compelled to obey him. She needed him to give her orders. Iro had learned early into the new relationship that if he failed to properly be her master, she could become dangerous to herself and him.
The mirtor had done weird things to Elizabeth. Her height had changed, her hair and eye color, even her body shape had changed each time she looked in the mirror. She'd become a frills wearing, sexy maid, and a leather clad submissive. Finally, as if the end of a long journey, she had returned to a form similar to her original one...if you didn't look too close. Her curves were now more pronounced, her hair was a lighter shade of brown, and she had grown several inches. The process had aged her a bit, internally. She had gone by the name Lizy, but now she wished to go by her full name. Small things. Yet if you tried to ask her about any of it, she didn't seem to recognize that anything strange had happened. That anything had happened at all.
Much like the consequences of not maintaining control, pushing too hard with questions had cause some negative behaviors as well.
"Elizabeth, what's the status?"
"They'll be here shortly. Everything is set up and ready to go. Would you please stop asking me the same question."
Elizabeth wouldn't tell him to do anything, even to stop his whining. But she was still capable of getting annoyed.
Iro grinned at her, appreciating the familiarity. It was one of the few things that hadn't changed, despite everything else.
"Alright, alright," he said, holding up his hands in surrender. "I'm just making sure we're prepared."
"We are," she reassured him, her voice softening. "And so are you."
Iro nodded, taking a deep breath. He knew she was right. He'd spent weeks preparing for this meeting, researching the company, and drafting proposals. He'd even practiced his presentation in front of the mirror, though he tried not to think about that too much.
Mirrors still made him nervous. The mirror of domination was securely locked away, and he'd never use it again. One servant was more than he'd ever needed. Plus, if the story his grandfather had told him years ago was true, it could be very dangerous. The mirror was responsible for his Grandmother's death, though only he and his grandfather knew that. Well, only Oro knew that now. His grandfather had acted like he would die soon when he gave Iro the mirror, locked in a old metal foot locker, but in truth, he'd lived almost another five years. Long enough to see Iro graduate from university.
University life had been odd as well. Halfway through sophomore year, one of his few friends at school had just disappeared. No one else seemed concerned about it. She'd dropped out of school and texted, eventually, to say she'd gone overseas. Iro had never been satisfied with that answer, but he'd eventually moved on.
He and his roommate Jay, who'd undergone a 180 after getting chewed out by his parents that same holiday break, remained roommates until graduation, eventually adding one more to their numbers.
Erika. Short, fiery red hair, easily excitable, and completely unpredictable. She'd shown up shortly after his other friend had disappeared, and while he'd been suspicious of her for some reason, eventually they'd become close. Very close.
But then graduation came, and they'd both gone out west while Iro ended up in Minnesota. Jay had at least called a few times, but within a year, it was like they'd fallen off of the planet and disappeared.
Iro's mind was wandering. That didn't happen very often. Apparently this upcoming meeting really had him on edge.
"Alright, focus." Iro said to himself. This meeting would be very important. If they succeeded here, they could finally afford to increase their two person operation. They could hire two or three people, and then finally he might be able to get a good night's sleep.
Not that he minded the late nights with Elizabeth, but there was only so much work one person could do. And he needed to make sure she was properly... managed.
Just as Iro was straightening his tie, the intercom buzzed. Elizabeth's voice came through, crisp and professional. "Mr. Iro, our guests have arrived."
Iro took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and walked to the door. "Thank you, Elizabeth. Send them in."
The door opened, and in walked Erika, flaming red locks framing her unforgettable face. While still recovering from the shock of her appearance, he saw behind her another familiar face, Jay. His suit seemed more like a butlers attire than a businessman's, but the shock of seeing them here, now. He stared at them, mouth agape as Elizabeth walked into the conference hall behind them.
Erika's full red lips curved into a smile. "Really, Iro? After all these years, you're just going to stand there looked like a stunned fish?"