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Full PRESENT:The slave kneels upright (not sitting back on his heels), with the knees spread shoulder wide, the hands are crossed behind the back above the ass, like a military "parade rest"; the chest is held forward, wide and strong, and the head is bowed to a 30° angle with eyes down. The Full PRESENT is used when awaiting orders from a Master or when directed to report to a Master. | |
Honor PRESENT: The same as above except that the slave kneels upright with only the right knee on the ground and the left leg bent. The slave makes his greeting statement then stands (without command). The Honor PRESENT is used whenever the slave comes into a Master's presence in the course of his normal duties Who may be unfamiliar with this protocol or is unknown to the slave. In this situation The verbal form is significantly different: If the slave is in service to a Master, he says, "Sir, this slave's Master honors You, Sir." If the slave is not currently in service, he says, "Sir, this slave honors You, Sir." The slave then remains in position for several seconds before standing unless directed otherwise by the Master. This form of presenting is done to honor a Master and avoid a period of embarrassment for a Master not familiar with this type of protocol. |
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Standing PRESENT: This is the same as Full PRESENT except that the slave remains standing instead of kneeling, still with his knees shoulder wide. This position is often used when awaiting orders or opportunities to serve at parties or other gatherings. It allows the slave a good view of the room while not being in the way of traffic or drawing undue attention to the slave. Public PRESENT: This position is similar to a Standing PRESENT except that the general position may be a bit more relaxed than in the Standing PRESENT. |
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| INSPECTION: This is a special purpose position. It is similar to the Standing PRESENT except that the knees might be slightly more than shoulder wide; the head is held more upright (to give a good view of the face) with eyes down; and the hands are locked above the head with the thumbs touching the back of the crown of the head. Some Masters prefer the hands locked behind the head but that conceals the back of the head and the palms of the hands. |  |
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| The following positions are not commonly used in The Lair, but are included here for information. They are used in some other households. | ||
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PLEADThe slave kneels as in the Full PRESENT and places his hands on the floor in front of him so that the first finger of each hand and thumb of each hand touch and form a triangle. the slave then places his forehead on the floor in the triangle formed by his hands. In this position the thighs should be vertical and the back straight. This position may be used when asking a Master for something special. It is also sometimes used as a punishment position. |
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KOWTOWThis position starts in the PLEAD position. The torso is then lowered back to the ground or as close to the ground as possible. It may be necessary to spread the knees a little further apart to accommodate this position. The slave's wrists may be crossed in this position. KOWTOW is used at the direction of a Master. It is usually a sign of complete submission. I have seen this position used most frequently during collaring ceremonies. |
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ObedienceThe slave kneels as in the Full PRESENT and places his forehead on the floor. Hands remain behind the back. In this position the thighs should be vertical and the back straight. This is a difficult position to maintain for any length of time. |
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A slave never simply says "Hello" or "Good-bye" to a Master. Such casual, familiar greetings and farewells are normally replaced by PRESENTING—a disciplined, thoughtful process of entering or leaving the Master's presence and control. When a slave greets a Master, he is surrendering himself to the Master's control to at least some extent. When a slave takes leave of a Master, he is asking to have that control extended beyond the Master's direct presence or to leave that control entirely. These principles apply whenever the slave enters or leaves any space or room occupied by a Master and whenever a Master enters or leaves any room or space occupied by the slave - if under social conditions a "good bye" would be in order. The full ritual may be waived at the Master's discretion if there is much coming and going in a short space of time, but a slave should always expect and be prepared to PRESENT when entering a Master's space, or vice versa, and to ask permission before leaving (see below) unless he is carrying out a prior order.
PRESENTING
Whenever a slave enters a Master's presence, the slave comes up to the Master, or within His line of sight, and PRESENTS himself as soon as practical. PRESENTING means either that the slave has completed any prior orders or fulfilled the requirements of standing orders for the time and is prepared to await the Master's pleasure, or that the slave is engaged in some task and requires the Master's instruction to complete it. In either case, the slave brings himself within the Master's awareness, without disturbing whatever the Master is doing at the time, and waits for acknowledgment. If the Master enters a space where the slave is engaged, PRESENTING means that whatever the slave was doing, he is prepared to follow whatever direction the Master wishes to give him.
Positions. The PRESENTING positions express the strength of the slave and the power of his obedience. Normally all are held without moving until the slave is freed to move again by an order from the Master to Whom he is PRESENTING.
The default form. Full PRESENT (kneeling on both knees) is the default form and is normally used whenever the Master being PRESENTED to is sitting or lying down. The Honor PRESENT may be used when serving something to a Master. A Standing PRESENT may be used in private when the Master is standing (though kneeling is always acceptable if that feels more natural to the slave) or at the Master's discretion. A Public PRESENT is used anywhere in public where kneeling or the more formal Standing PRESENT might draw undesirable attention.
Feeling your slavery. After a slave is in a PRESENTING position, he pauses for a moment to feel the presence and reality of his slavery. It is important for the slave to take the needed time for this before addressing the Master.
PRESENT and wait. The slave normally remains motionless in the PRESENTING position until he is either told to continue or given some other order. When told to continue, if the slave was in the process of fulfilling some other order before PRESENTING, he returns to that activity. If the slave was not fulfilling another order, he is free to honestly express himself physically, such as by wrapping his arms around the Master's leg, kissing His boots, and so on.
Exceptions. If the Master is busy and moving around the room when the slave enters the space and takes the Full or Standing PRESENT position, and the slave is not quickly acknowledged, the slave may move his eyes while waiting to finish PRESENTING in order to follow the Master's location in the room and not miss a hand signal or other gesture to approach. If in the Standing position, he may even change his own location in the room to avoid losing track of the Master. Typically, however, the Master will quickly notice the slave and tell him to "sit," "stay," or "continue." If told to "stay," the slave remains where he is and maintains the PRESENTING position until given another order.
Changing positions. When a slave is changing positions or moving about in a room, all movement must be accomplished in a smooth, quiet and unobtrusive manner. The goal is for the slave to complete the movement without drawing attention to himself or distracting others in the area. This will require a considerable amount of practice. There should be no body swaying, leaning, or twisting when changing positions.
PRESENTING to Several Masters
If more than one Master is in a space in our home that a slave enters, or enters a space in our home where a slave is engaged, the slave will PRESENT in this order of priority:
- the Master to Whom the slave is in service (if any) Master Shack or Master Dutch, Whomever is closer, and then the other if both are present the Master to Whom he has been assigned (if different from the preceding) other Masters or Mistresses familiar with the protocol Whom the slave has previously met (change "Sir" to "Ma'am" or other appropriate title for a Mistress) Masters or Mistresses the slave does not know (use the Honor PRESENT unless instructed otherwise, changing "Sir" to "Ma'am" for a Mistress).
- After PRESENTING to all Masters in the space, the slave will offer an Honor PRESENT to other guests besides slaves. slave brothers may be greeted after all have finished PRESENTING.
(This order of priority can be altered for spaces other than our home by substituting the Master(s) who own or control that space for Master Shack and Master Dutch.)In certain circumstances the slave may be directed to PRESENT only once when a group of Masters enters or when entering the space of a group of Masters. In this situation the slave will usually use the form of PRESENT appropriate to the Master present who is highest on the priority above.
PRESENTING in Public
A slave responds to a Master's presence in public the same as in private, but to accommodate the public's acceptance and understanding, a slave would normally offer a Public PRESENT, the modification of the Standing PRESENT described above. The same position is used in public whenever the slave must stand by and wait while the Master is otherwise engaged. In this and all other respects, a slave's behavior in public must engender respect for slavery and for the Master he serves. In a restaurant: A slave stands at the end of the booth or side of the table in the Public PRESENT position until the Master tells him to sit by word or gesture. The slave discreetly says, "Sir, yes, Sir! Thank You, Sir!" and takes his seat. When the Master stands for any reason, the slave again rises to the Public PRESENT position if the situation makes it possible—gracefully and naturally, not looking hurried, clumsy, or "put upon"—and remains in that position until the Master issues another order. If the Master gives no further order, the slave may resume his previous position until the Master returns.
Continuing
The concept of "continuing" has been touched on already. Whenever the process of PRESENTING is not followed by a new order, the slave is either told to continue what he was doing or was previously ordered to do, or else the slave asks, "Sir, do You wish this slave to continue (with assigned tasks, in Your service, etc.), Sir?" The slave does not move from the PRESENTING position (whatever form that may be) until a new order or an order to continue is given. (Note: no Master has the right to require intimate services from a slave unless the slave is in personal service to that Master. Also, no visiting Master may require any services that interfere with a slave's standing orders or current orders from Us. See "ORDERS" below.) As with any Master, the slave will respond to all communications from the Master with, "Sir, yes, Sir! Thank You, Sir!"
Before extended absence. There is a slight variation when the slave must leave the Master's presence for an extended time; the slave says, "Sir, service requires this slave to ... , do You wish this slave to continue with required service, Sir?" If the answer is affirmative, the slave responds, "Sir, yes, Sir! Thank You, Sir!" and is then free to leave the Master's presence.
