The Mercedes purred to life, its sleek silver exterior gleaming in the midmorning sunlight. Meredith navigated out of the airport parking structure, her fingers firm on the leather steering wheel. Susan settled into the passenger seat, her leather coat draped across her lap.

Almost immediately after leaving the highway, brake lights began flickering ahead, signaling that traffic was going to be even messier this time around. Gridlock always seemed to emerge at the most inconvenient moments, and this time around there were no side streets that could help her.

“Well, this is a mess. This might take a while, Susan. My apologies,” Meredith declared.

The hypnodomme leaned back in her passenger seat. Her gorgeous eyes scanned the congested streets, seemingly unbothered by the delay. “No need to apologize. These things happen.”

Everything was going backward this time around. Where Meredith had saved time, she was now losing it, a quick drive rapidly transforming into a potential hour-long crawl.

“If this keeps up, we’re not going to make it in time,” Meredith muttered, tapping her fingers against her impatient legs. She hated getting stuck and being helpless to fix the situation. Without thinking, she bit a fingernail and immediately regretted it.

“You seem nervous,” Mistress Susan noted. “Do you want to talk about something to get your mind off things?”

“That would be nice,” Meredith sighed, her breath fogging the driver’s window. 

“Very well. Tell me why you decided to make KNOT a reality. What drove you to want to do this? Was it just your experiences in the community or something else?”

“BDSM has given me so much over the years that I wanted to give something back. Something good and memorable, a safe space for all who still struggle to find their own. It’s not an easy world out there, especially for people who have certain inclinations that others don’t understand the way we do.”

“And by others, do you mean vanilla people or someone else? Friends? Family, perhaps?”

“I… well, not everyone I know likes these things and even those that do, don’t have the same connection to it, if you know what I mean.”

“Of course, I do. I’m in the same boat. Being a hypnodomme isn’t exactly something you can talk about at family gatherings and not expect to see a couple of eyebrows raised. Believe me when I tell you I’ve dealt with many annoying situations in the past. Does it bother you? When people don’t understand your submissive desires, I mean?”

“It can be irksome but I’m better at dealing with it now than I was in the past.”

“Because you stopped being involved in the scene as much?”

“Yes. Looking at things from this perspective is quite different. My feelings are a lot clearer and so are my interactions with others.”

“You speak as someone who went in too deep on occasions… am I wrong?” Mistress Susan inquired. “If that’s a touchy subject, ignore my remarks. I’m just curious.”

“No, it’s okay,” Meredith turned to the hypnodomme to avoid looking at the traffic ahead. “Yes, when I was still a newbie, I… got too excited on a handful of occasions. Things could have gone poorly if I didn’t have a strong safety net.”

“I hear you. The rush can be quite intense, overwhelming even. I’ve felt it too when I’m in the middle of a session and I see my subjects captivated by my words. Self-control is more important than ever in those moments. A great sense of responsibility as well.”

Meredith nodded, taking in the Domme’s words The fetish world was one of magnificent bliss but when all rules were cast aside, it could also become a hellish nightmare. Luckily, she’d never gone completely under, unlike others who had to quit the scene to keep their wits about them.

“Now, what I don’t like is when people feel responsible for things that are out of their control…” Mistress Susan continued. “What’s the point of obsessing about something you can’t change, huh?”

She was right. Meredith checked her watch. Time was running out but it wasn’t the end of the world if they didn’t get there before the opening. Dominic would handle things and do a wonderful job at it because he was great. Everything was great. Absolutely everything, she told herself.

And then, as if by divine intervention, the lanes ahead parted like a red sea of automobiles, creating an unexpected pathway. Meredith downshifted and navigated through the sudden opening, her muscles relaxing as the Mercedes glided past the previous bottleneck. Mistress Susan smiled, her elegant hand resting under her chin.

“What do you know? Luck decided to bless us,” she remarked.

Within minutes, they pulled up to the conference center, a massive glass and steel structure that had seen many events in its lifetime, but not one like this. The parking lot was already filling with sleek vehicles - black SUVs, luxury sedans, and the occasional gleaming sports car that spoke of wealth and power.

As they exited the vehicle, the crisp air swirled around them, carrying whispers of tension and expectation. Dominic stood near the entrance, speaking with a group of technicians who had just solved a last-minute setback with the light near the registration area. He smiled at Meredith and gave her a thumbs up, happy to see she had made it in time.

The lobby buzzed with activity, a kaleidoscope of individuals from all walks of life converging in one dynamic space. Some attendees were clad in sleek, professional attire - tailored suits and crisp blouses that exuded an air of businesslike precision. Others embraced the more daring sartorial choices typical of the KNOT event, sporting ensembles of leather and latex that clung to their forms with bold defiance. 

The outfits ranged from the sharply tailored to the provocatively avant-garde, creating a visual symphony that hinted at the intricate and multifaceted world they were about to delve into. The games were about to begin.