"Master, can I be your slave...permanently?" 

That was the question that began our new life together. It is a question that still rings in my ears all these years later. She asked the question of me that Saturday evening after making the statement to me the night before, that she wanted to know more about the D/s lifestyle that attracted me so much. She had tasted it, and found that she, too, had a penchant for the 'Dark Side' as a submissive. And she decided she wanted more. She wanted to take this D/s thing to the next level, and I wasn't about to stand in the way of her development!

"If we are going to do this, pet, I want to do it right," I told her.

"Right, Master?" she asked.

"Yes," I said, "There is a ceremony called the Collaring Ceremony that is performed when a Master takes a slave. It is a lot like a marriage ceremony, but with a twist. And if you and I are going to be Master and slave, I want to have our own Collaring Ceremony."

"Yes Master," she said, smiling at me with her warm brown eyes.

"We will need to do a little shopping first, though, there are some things we'll need for the Ceremony. Plan on having the Ceremony this next Saturday, That should give us enough time to prepare for it properly," I told her.

"Yes, Master. I look forward to it," she said.

That week I did the necessary shopping - going to the hardware store, the craft store, and the pet store for her collar. I gathered all the needed items for what I hoped would be something she would enjoy, and something that would remove any lingering doubt about this strange new life she had experienced. Our Collaring Ceremony would take aspects of the Rose Ceremony, mixed with aspects of a Gorean ceremony, and some ideas for other couples' personal ceremonies mixed in to make ours unique and special for us both.

As the day of her Collaring approached, I took her to a website that had an example of a Collaring Ceremony.

"This is an idea of what will happen Saturday, pet. Look it over so you will know a bit more about what to expect. You will need to come up with your own vows to be read during the Ceremony. These should be your own words and ideas although, you can get some ideas from this website. They are basically like marriage vows," I told her.

"But Master, you know I'm not good with words like you are!" she protested.

"You will do fine, pet. Just say what's in your heart. It will only be the two of us there, so you won't have to worry about being embarrassed," I said.

"Yes Master," she replied, feeling better about it since she knew it would just be her and I there.

Saturday came and I went into my study to prepare. I left strict instructions she was not to enter the room until I gave her permission so she would not see the preparations. "When we got married, I couldn't see the bride until you walked down the aisle. Now it's my turn to surprise you!" I said. She agreed and busied herself with household chores until closer to the appointed time of her Ceremony.

"Okay, pet, it's time for you to get ready. Go upstairs and prepare yourself as I have shown you, and when you're ready come back down here. I will be waiting for you here by the study door," I said.

"Yes Master," she said and went upstairs to get ready. About twenty minutes later, she came down ready for the Ceremony. She was naked except for a bridal veil and she carried a single white rose, just starting to open up. She came up to me and we got ready to walk into the room. I was dressed in all black and carried a fully bloomed red rose.

We entered the room and she noticed my desk had a white tablecloth on it. On the table were two candles - a tall red one on the right side, a shorter white one on the left, each one unlit. Between the two was a silver plate with a collar on it. Directly behind it was a glass dome with a wooden base and in it was a fake red rose and a fake white one similar to what we carried, but without the stems. In front of the plate was a three-foot length of gold colored chain. And off to the right of the plate in between the red candle and the plate was a small bell. In front of the desk was a small white pillow. Everything on the table had a distinct purpose in the Ceremony. We walked up to the desk and then turned to face each other.

When we were ready, I lit my candle and she lit hers. Then I began the Ceremony by ringing the bell.

"Pet," I said. "You have expressed a desire to become a slave to me and to serve me on a permanent basis. You understand the commitment that this entails. Are you prepared to devote yourself entirely to me and serve me with all your mind, all your body, and all your heart for as long as I will have you?" I said.

"Yes Master," she said.

"You may read the vows you prepared then," I told her.

"Master Jonathan, you have shown me a new life and have guided me thus far in learning to become a true slave.

Then it was my turn.

"Pet, I accept your offer of submission and give you my promise to safely guide you along the path I tread, respecting your limitations but always striving to challenge you to expand them. I promise to always put your safety and your well-being as my utmost priority and will care for you and protect you with all that I am." I said.

"Now it is time for the roses," I told her. "Pet, your white rose symbolizes your submission. The white color represents purity, as does the white veil you wear, while the still closed petals show that your submission is not complete. It never shall be, because submission is a journey without end. You will never stop learning how to submit to me because there will always be more that you can give to me.

My red rose signifies my dominance and the red color means that I will protect you, even to the point of spilling my own blood to do so. The rose in full bloom means that I am mature and ready to take on such a responsibility as I do this night. Now it is time to exchange our roses." I said.

"I offer you my rose as a sign of my submission. Please accept me and take me as your slave." and she handed me her rose. I placed it on the silver plate next to the collar on the right.

"I offer you my rose as a sign of my acceptance and domination of you. You will now be my slave and my property," I handed her my red rose and she placed my rose on the plate on the left side of the collar.

At this point, I picked up the collar from the silver plate. "Kneel now and accept your collar," I said. She knelt on the white pillow and leaned her head forward, putting her hair up and exposing her beautiful neck. I fastened the collar around her and buckled it in place. Then I lifted her chin to look me in the face.

"What are you?"

"Your slave, Master."

"What is your name, slave?"

"Whatever you wish it to be, Master."

"As your new Master, it is my prerogative to give you a new slave name. I have chosen the name babysub for you because you are a new submissive - a baby submissive. So I will use that name. Your new slave name will be babysub."

"Yes, Master. my name is babysub."

I took a pin from the table and took her left hand and pricked her ring finger, spilling a drop of blood on the white rosebud from the glass dome. Then I licked another drop of blood and tasted her. I took the pin and did the same to my left-hand ring finger using my blood drop to cover hers showing my dominance. Then I offered her my finger and she licked my blood. After that, I covered the roses with the glass dome.

I turned to her and, holding her hand, wrapped the chain around our wrists and hands. "This chain symbolizes the strength of our union tonight. May it never fail, never break."

Then I rang the bell once again to end the Ceremony. I blew out the candles, took my new slave in my arms and we went upstairs to bed as Master and slave that night. As I got into bed with my newly-collared slave, I noticed she had been crying, even though she tried to hide it.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing, Master, it's... it's... Oh, Master, that was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life!" she started crying all over again.

"Yes, my love, a Collaring Ceremony is in some ways more beautiful than a wedding. with a wedding, you have all sorts of other things to contend with - lots of people, family, and friends. Legal issues like licenses and blood tests, and other extraneous distractions. But with a Collaring Ceremony, it's just the two people involved in a private ceremony. There might be a couple other people there if the Master and slave wish, but not always. So in a way, it is way more inmate and personal," I explained.

"It was just beautiful, Master. Thank you so much. Thank you for being my Master," she said and she kissed me warmly.

Authors Note: This is a continuation of the story "The Awakening" that I wrote earlier. It takes place a few days after the first story and finishes the account of how I became a D/s Master. Enjoy!