Substitute

[DaraJaney]

Once he completed his exams and was free of school, Tom went to visit his Mum.  He was hoping for good enough results to get him into college to do engineering.

When he arrived his Mum was on the phone to her employer Lady Hartley.  His sister Kate was supposed to be starting work as a maid today but hadn't shown up.  His mother was most apologetic.  This was extremely embarrassing for her, letting down her employer.  Lady Hartley was clearly not pleased.

"Well perhaps my other daughter could substitute until Kate gets here", his mother suggested.  Tom was perplexed.  Other daughter?  She didn't have another daughter.  It was clear though that Lady Hartley wanted the problem solved immediately.

His mother put down the phone and looked at him.  "I'm sorry but you'll have to substitute for Kate until she gets here."  Tom's jaw dropped.  "What?  You're kidding", he laughed.  But his mother wasn't laughing.  She wasn't having any debate.  "I'll go and get the uniform."

Tom was left there disbelieving that she was going to make him be a maid for a day or two.  But she returned with the clothes and immediately steered him into the bathroom and took a pack of razors in her hand.

He pleaded and pleaded but she threatened and cajoled him.  There would be no money to send him to university.  No money for anything.  He would be cut off.  Meanwhile she shaved his legs and body hair, brooking no argument.

That done she took the maid's uniform.  It was a very traditional black with white lace trim at the collar, sleeves and hem.  She threw it over his head.  When it settled he could see that there were several layers of petticoats attached that made the skirt stand out.  His mother tried to zip it up but it wouldn't go.  "Too small", his mother muttered frustratedly.  She took it off him and Tom breathed a sigh of relief.  This would get him out of the fix.

His mother rummaged in a drawer and found a corset.  His face dropped.  "Mum!  Please!"  But she ignored him and placed the corset around his torso, hooking it up at the front.  She started pulling on the strings.  The corset tightened around him.  His mother was pleased.  "This gives you a nice high girlish waist."

It was quite tight around him and he wondered how he would be able to breathe.  Then his mother placed her hand in the small of his back and pulled again.  He couldn't believe that the corset tightened around him even further.   His mother quickly tied the strings in place.  She pushed two pairs of rolled up socks into the bra cups.

"I can't possibly wear this", he pleaded, feeling his tiny waist.  But his mother pulled the maid's uniform over his head again and this time it zipped up snuggly.  "There!" she said happily and went off.  Tom tried to reach the zip but it was extremely difficult as he was so tightly corseted.

His mother returned with a pair of black stockings.  "Seriously?!"  She ignored his disbelief and sat him on the bed and proceeded to pull the stockings up his legs and attach them to the suspender straps on his corset.  She took great care to get the seams straight.

He stood up and felt his suspenders and stockings stretch.  He walked around a little and could feel them move with every step.  Now his mother was fitting shoes on his feet.  She strapped them at the ankle.  He staggered forward in his high heels.  He was taken aback.  "I can't wear those all day!"  "Lots of ladies have to", she said dismissively.

She was working on his long hair now with curling tongs and when she was satisfied placed a frilly cap on his head.  She pulled white gloves on his hands.  They had lace trim around the wrists.  Then she put his white apron on, tying the sash in a big bow at the back.  "There!"  She pushed him in front of the mirror.  He couldn't believe how he looked.

His cap was a little off-centre so he reached up to adjust it.  His dress rode up and revealed the tops of his stockings.  He immediately dropped his arms and tried to push his petticoats down.  "Mum it's much too short!"  His mother thought about it.  Then she appeared to have a solution.  She rummaged in a drawer and produced a pair of white frilly pettipants.  She made him step into them.  "What on earth!"  he protested, wondering how this was supposed to solve them problem.  "You're right.  Your dress is too short.  So you need to wear pretty underwear."  Tom couldn't believe it as she pulled the frilly pants up under his petticoats.  But every protest from him seemed to make things worse.

She sat him down and started on his make-up.  He watched in the mirror disconsolately as she applied thick foundation.  Then she powdered some blush on his cheeks.  She used an eye-liner and  brushed some eye shadow on.  Then she popped out the lipstick and painted his lips red.  Once again he was astonished how he looked.

His mother wasn't so impressed though.  She went "hmm, one more thing".  She produced a pair of false eyelashes and glued them to his eyelids.  The weight of the eyelashes made him flutter his eyelids and he could feel the eyelashes swish and see them when he lowered his eyes. 
"Mum, do I have to have these?" he protested, fluttering repeatedly much to his own annoyance.  "Yes absolutely, we have to make you look as convincing as possible.  You don't want her to see that you are a boy, do you?"  Tom looked down despondently and fluttered his eyelashes again.  "Right, we'd better get you over there."  Tom felt sick.

[DaraJaney]

It was only now that the enormity of it hit him.  He had assumed all along that this wouldn't work but here he was tottering along in high heels, desperately trying to breathe in his tight corset, the stretch of his stockings and suspenders reminding him to try to keep his swinging petticoats down.

His mother was about to knock on the door of the drawing room when a thought struck her.  "Do you know how to curtsey?"  "What?"  She demonstrated for him.  "Seriously?!"  She made him do it several times, holding out his petticoats daintily, before she was satisfied.

Then she knocked on the door and he heard a stern "Come in".  This was it.  His heart thumped like mad.  His mother opened the door and he tottered in on his high heels trying to walk in a convincingly feminine way.  He minced over in front of Lady Hartley, took his petticoat hems in his fingers and curtsied.  He was practically shaking he was so nervous.  His mother introduced him as Michelle and he flinched on being called a girl's name.  They hadn't agreed a name beforehand.  He hadn't thought of it.

Lady Hartley looked at him dubiously.  Her eyes clearly went to the hem of his short dress and he suspected she could see his lace stocking tops.  Surely she would be unhappy that the dress was so short on him.  Nevertheless he tried to discretely push his petticoats down.

"Very good", she responded and his heart sank.  "You can start with a little dusting", she instructed him, nodding towards a feather duster on the sideboard.  Tom stood cringing for a moment at the realization that he was going to spend the day as a maid.  He minced over and took the feather duster.  He looked around the enormous room.  It was full of antique furniture and hundreds of ornaments.  It would take ages to dust everything.  His mother made her excuses and left.  Tom sighed and set about his dusting.

Almost immediately, the heels started hurting his feet.  What was it going to be like wearing them all day!  He spent a good hour dusting before he heard a bell tinkle beside Lady Hartley.  He turned around.  She had rung a little bell on her coffee table.  He realized that she was summoning the maid - him.

He put his feather duster down and flounced over towards her.  He attempted to stand steadily in his high heels.  "Curtsey!" she ordered and he flinched before gathering his petticoats and doing as he was ordered.
"Tea!"  "Yes Lady Hartley", he replied in as feminine a voice as he could manage and went to turn away.  She coughed pointedly and glared at him.  He stopped, curtsied again and she seemed satisfied.  He exited the room and started the long walk to the kitchen at the back of the house.

There he made tea in a pot and placed a cup and saucer on a tray.  He poured a jug of milk, took the tray and carried it very carefully up the steps and back towards the front of the house terrified that he would trip up in his high heels.

He entered the room, tottered over to the coffee table and put the tray down.  "Oh and I'd like a chocolate biscuit", Lady Hartley ordered.  Tom curtsied and cursed under his breath.  He flounced his way all the way back to the kitchen.  His ankles were aching and he'd only had the high heels on a couple of hours.  He found the chocolate biscuits and placed a few on a plate and made his way back to the sitting room.

And so the day continued with her ladyship regularly tinkling the bell to make the maid come running and curtsey in front of her, ready to take the next instruction.

At the end of the day Tom collapsed exhausted into his bed.  He breathed such a sigh of relief when he finally pulled his high heels off and loosened his corset.  It took several minutes before he could ease his feet flat on the floor.

His mother informed him that there had been no word from his sister so it looked like he was going to have to do it all again the next day.  "Please Mum, No!  Anything but that!"

[DaraJaney]

The following morning his mother squeezed him into his corset, attached his stockings, forced his feet into the high heels and pulled his maid's uniform over his head before caking his face in make-up and gluing his false eyelashes on.  Tom flounced around the house again trying to satisfy Lady Hartley's demanding needs.

Towards the end of the day she told him to fetch his mother.  She came into the drawing room looking quite stressed.  "I'm sorry Lady Hartley but Kate still hasn't arrived."

"Never mind", Lady Hartley replied and his mother relaxed a little.  "I suppose Michelle will have to do.  She can become my permanent maid."  Tom's jaw dropped.  He looked at his mother desperately.  She hesitated but then said "Thank you Lady Hartley, I'll make the arrangements immediately."  Tom was looking at her aghast.  His mother just prompted him to curtsey.

He desperately wanted to protest but couldn't do anything that might reveal the deception.  He curtsied and muttered "Thank you Lady Hartley" and flounced out of the room after his mother.

As soon as the door was shut he went "Mum!"  "Sorry dear but I could lose my job if I make her angry so you'll just have to play along for now."  "For now?  But she said ?permanent' maid!"  "Well that really just means a full time job.  But you'll have to be the maid until I get someone else."
"Mum please!  You can't keep me in this corset every day and these heels and suspenders!"  "You don't want your mother to lose her job do you?  There'll definitely be no college for you then."  "Well, no, of course not?"  "Good, then you'll be the maid until I can get someone else.  It's obvious Kate isn't coming."  "This is ridiculous!  Can't you make her?  She's should be the maid.  Not me!"

But there was no way out and Tom had to be the maid until his mother found someone else.  She got him a set of false breasts that strapped on like a bra and fitted nicely into the cups of his corset.  Now, added to the tightness of his corset, the stretching of his suspenders and stockings, the highly restricted steps forced on him by his high heels, the flouncing of his petticoats and the fluttering of his false eyelashes he had realistically wobbling boobs when he walked.

On the following Saturday his mother brought him to the local village and walked him into the beautician's without warning.  She told them ?she' was to have ears pierced, hair permed, eyebrows plucked and nails painted pink.  There was nothing Tom could do to protest without giving the game away.  He just had to sit there while he was being further feminized.

On Sunday she made him wear a floral dress over petticoats, tan seamed stockings and five-inch heels - on the basis that his four-inch heels wouldn't seem so bad after that.  Tom desperately scuttled along behind her clutching his purse in his snow white gloves and trying to hold his floppy white hat on.

When Kate heard what had happened she had to visit and see him.  "Get her to take over from me!" he pleaded with his Mum.  "I've no intention of being a maid!" Kate stated firmly.  "Well I shouldn't have to be one!" Tom protested.  "Lady Hartley wouldn't take her now anyway, after she let us down", his mother reasoned.

Kate was amused to see that, even after his workday as a maid, her mother managed to keep Tom busy with feminine things.  He spent the evening repainting his nails, putting curlers in his hair to preserve his perm and shaving his legs.

There was nothing for him to do while waiting for his nails to dry other than read the ladies' magazines that his mother bought.  When he was in the bathroom putting his curlers in his mother told Kate "They pay his wages into my account so I control it all."  She was clearly quite pleased with that.

"When do you think you can get somebody to replace him?" Kate asked.  Her mother checked to see that Tom couldn't overhear.  "I've no intention of getting a replacement", she giggled.  "What?" Kate was astonished.

"I'm not having him going off lazing around and boozing as a student when I can have him here all nicely trussed up in corsets, stockings and suspenders, high heels and a perm and totally under my control."  Kate couldn't believe her mother's deviousness but she loved it.

The next morning Tom was checking his petticoats in the mirror almost ready for work.  "Your seams are not quite straight", Kate teased him.  She giggled as he tried to twist to see his stocking seams in the mirror.  He sighed heavily.

"I'm sure Mum will find a replacement soon", Kate lied.  Tom sighed again.  "She'd better."  He picked up his feather duster and flounced off to start his day's work.  Kate smiled in the knowledge that he thought that his corset, stockings and suspenders, maid's dress, petticoats, high heels, false eyelashes, false boobs and perm were temporary whereas his mother was determined to make it permanent and she held all the cards.

[DaraJaney]

At the end of the summer Lady Hartley announced that her granddaughter was coming to live with her while she went to college.  "Michelle" was instructed to take particular care of her.

He was summoned into the sitting room when Alice arrived.  He flounced across the room noting Alice's amused look at his short maid's uniform and petticoats and high heels.  He curtsied in front of her.  "Oh that won't be necessary", she said in response.  "It certainly will", Lady Hartley corrected her.  "It's important that the maid knows her place."  Tom curtsied to her "Yes Madam."  Alice just shrugged.

"Now bring Miss Alice's bags up to her room."  Tom curtsied.  "Yes Madam."  He took the bags upstairs to her room while Alice followed.  As Tom ascended the stairs he wondered if she could see his frilly pettipants up under his petticoats.  He thought he could hear her snigger.  But that might have been just at his lace stocking tops or perhaps his seams.

He put her bags on the bed and Alice proceeded to take things out.  "I'll need these ironed."  She pulled out several pairs of jeans and slacks.  Tom couldn't help ogling them wondering when he would get to wear trousers again.  Then there was a pile of t-shirts and even socks and panties that she wanted ironed.  It was a massive pile.  It hadn't taken her long to get used to the idea of having a maid.

Tom curtsied.  "Yes Miss."  He took the pile of ironing.  "And bring me a glass of water please."  Tom stopped, turned to her and curtsied again.  "Yes Miss."  He went for the door.  "With ice", she added.  He sighed.  Stopped again, turned to her and curtsied yet again.  "Yes Miss".  She was grinning broadly, enjoying this enormously.

When he returned with the cup of tea she was reclining on the bed with some science magazines.  He tried to read the headlines.  He'd been starved of intellectual thought for a long time now.  He noticed an article about a new bridge design.

"Gosh that looks interesting", he commented, hoping that she might maybe lend the magazine to him.  "Yes, I can't wait to ask my lecturer about that", she responded throwing the magazine aside.  "But sweetie, where did you get that pink nail varnish?"  Tom frowned, much preferring to talk about bridge designs.  "I saw it in one of my mother's magazines", he told her.  "Oh would you find out where I can get it, there's a pet", Alice said as she picked up the science magazine again.  "Yes Miss", Tom said, curtseying as he looked longingly at the magazine.  "Oh, and the trim has come away on this blouse, could you sew it please?  Now."  "Yes Miss".  Tom curtsied and took the blouse.  He'd have to spend an hour at that.  He supposed he could do it while his mother watched "Fashion Today" on TV.

The next morning Tom saw Alice off for her first day of college.  "What do you have today, Miss?" he asked.  "We start with Mechanical Engineering, then there is Statistical Analysis and in the afternoon we have Physics."  It was mouth-watering for Tom.

"Now while I'm at college could you dust and hoover my room, hang up all the clothes you ironed and mended yesterday, do my latest laundry and clean the ensuite bathroom.  Thanks!" she said brightly as she went out.  "Yes Miss", Tom said as he curtsied.  He watched her head off for her interesting first day at college and then minced off to start the heavy workload of housework she had just given him.

Tom was exhausted by the time she returned but he came to the door as she arrived, eager to hear about her day at college.  "Good evening Miss", he said curtseying and helping her off with her coat.  "What was mechanical engineering like?"

"Great!" she said and he smiled at her excitement.  "Sweetie, I think your petticoats are out of sorts", she told him as she went upstairs.  He looked over his shoulder and saw that his uniform was indeed sticking up and revealing lots of petticoat.  He frustratedly smoothed his skirt down and then had to try to follow her upstairs quickly in his heels.

Alice plonked down on the bed.  She held a foot out.  "Could you help me off with my boots please?"  Tom curtsied and said "Yes Miss."  He bent over, unzipped the side of her boot and pulled at the heel.  "Ah!" Alice exhaled in relief and held up the other foot.  Tom removed her other boot.

"This bra is killing me, could you help me with my blouse?"  "Yes Miss", Tom said nervously realizing  that he was about to strip her to her bra.  He curtsied slowly, subconsciously putting the moment off.  He unbuttoned the front of her blouse, his fingers brushing against her breasts.  For once he was relieved to be wearing layers of petticoats that hid any embarrassing reaction to all this.

He pulled the blouse over her arms and revealed her powder blue push up bra beneath.  She turned around.  "Would you unclasp me?"  Tom curtsied and reached for the back of her bra.  He unhooked the three catches.  Alice just waited with her arms out so he had to pull the bra forward and reveal her naked breasts.  She turned around and stood before him quite unselfconsciously.  He didn't know where to look.  (Well, he did but you know what I mean.)

"These jeans are so tight", she announced and waited.  Tom played for time.  He curtsied.  "Yes Miss."  She waited and raised her arms.  He reached forward and unbuttoned the top of her jeans.  Then he pulled the zip down.  He swallowed hard.  He poked his fingers in under the waist of her jeans and pulled them down.  They were indeed tight and it had to pull hard and put his fingers inside, touching her skin, in order to pull them down.  She fell back, bum first, on the bed.  He pulled the legs of the jeans and stripped her to her panties.

"Now fetch my fleecey pajamas", she ordered.  Tom flounced across the room after a quick curtsey, relieved to be able to turn away from her nakedness.  He found the leopard print pajamas.  He had to hold the pants while she stepped in and pull them up over her bottom.  Then he held out the arms for her and finally buttoned up the front and put her breasts safely away.

"Slippers!"  Tom curtsied.  "Yes Miss."  He found her bunny rabbit slippers and she held up her feet for him to slip them on.  She climbed over to the centre of the bed and lay back.

He so envied her comfort as he stood there in his high heels, corset, suspenders, petticoats, thick foundation and false eyelashes fluttering.
"Now fetch me a glass of Prosecco", she said reaching for the TV remote.  "Yes Miss".  Tom curtsied.  "Do put all those clothes into the laundry.  Have you ironed today's laundry yet?"  "No Miss".  He curtsied.  "Well you'd better do that.  After that I'd like you to do my nails."  "Yes Miss."  Tom winced as he curtsied.  It was going to be a long evening.  Alice flicked on the TV and settled into the bed.

[DaraJaney]

On Friday Alice announced that she had a date for the evening.  Tom was to help her dress.  She told him what she wanted to wear and disappeared into the bathroom to shower.

As instructed, Tom laid her clothes out on the bed ? a black basque, black lace panties, black stockings, red coc-ktail dress and black high heel shoes.  He noted, though, that the heels weren't as high as those he had to wear all day every day.

Alice emerged from the shower with a towel wrapped around her head but otherwise completely naked.  "The panties please!" she ordered.  Tom took the black panties and held them down for her to step into.  He pulled them up over her crotch and bottom.  Once again he was grateful for what his layers of petticoats hid.

Then he pulled the basque down over her body.  He swallowed hard trying to suppress his excitement and then reached over in front and pulled the bra cups over her breasts.  Her pulled the straps together at the back and fastened the hooks.  Then he took one stocking, rolled it up and held it down for her to place her foot in it.  He unfurled the stocking up her leg and attached it to the three suspender straps on that side of the basque.  He repeated this with the other stocking.

"Would you paint my nails, sweetie?"  Alice sat on the bed and Tom fetched the bright red nail varnish.  He carefully painted her finger nails as she sat there in her basque, panties and stockings trying not to get too distracted.

When the varnish was dry he pulled the coc-ktail dress over her head and zipped her in.  She sat on the side of the bed and held a foot up.  He slipped a shoe onto each foot and fastened the strap at the ankle.

She did her make-up herself and as she put her lipstick in her purse she gave him instructions.  "Clean the room and the bathroom.  I expect to bring a guest home.  I want candles lit and put the box of condoms on the bedside table.  We should be back around 1am.  We'll want two glasses of Prosecco brought in when we arrive."

Tom curtsied but sighed heavily as soon as she left.  He was going to be in his corset and heels until the early hours of the morning.  He set about cleaning her bedroom and bathroom.

He heard them arrive close to 1am and giggle as they ran up the stairs.  He filled two glasses of Prosecco and took them up on a tray.  He knocked on the door.  There were more giggles before Alice composed herself and replied "come in".  Tom went in.  They were sitting up in bed, seemingly completely naked.  Tom curtsied.  The boy snorted.  Tom went over to the bed and held the tray in front of them.  They took the glasses, clinked and took a drink.

Tom curtsied and went to leave the room.  "Don't go far!  I'll call when I need you", Alice told him.  He sighed.  How long was he going to be kept up in his corset and heels.

He shifted uneasily from one foot to the other as he heard the groans of pleasure and heavy breathing that seemed to go on for ages eventually climaxing in loud shouts.  Then there was silence.  Then there was the tinkle of the bell.

Tom walked in and curtsied.  The couple disappeared naked into the bathroom.  "Another two glasses and clean the room up."  Tom looked around at the messed up bed linen.  He grimaced as he noticed the used condom on the floor.  He picked it up carefully with two fingers.

He was finally dismissed around 2.30am and tottered quickly off to his room to wrench off his high heels and undo the tight strings of his corset.

[DaraJaney]

A few weeks later Lady Hartley announced that she was going away for a week.  Tom was somewhat heartened by the news.  It would mean an easy week for him as maid.  Maybe he wouldn't have to wear the uniform all day when Alice was out.  He might even get to wear trousers for a few hours, he thought excitedly.

He flounced around dusting, relatively happy with the news.  Alice came into the drawing room and very quietly closed the door.  She tip-toed over to him in a conspiratorial way.  "You know that Lady Hartley is going away for a week?"  He nodded happily.  "Well it's my midterm break so I'm going to invite some friends to stay."  Tom's smile faded quickly.  "It's about time we made use of all these rooms", she said.  "How many friends?" Tom asked nervously.  "Oh just about 7 or 8", she said dismissively.  Tom cringed.  "They can each have their own room and ensuite", she said happily.  Tom sagged.  Seven or eight bedrooms and bathrooms to clean.  But there was never any room for protest.  "Yes Miss", he curtsied.  "Great!  That's settled then.  Not a word though", she said putting her finger to her lips.

Tom stood in the hallway as Lady Hartley waited for her taxi to arrive.  "I don't want you slacking off just because I'm away", she said sternly.  "No Lady Hartley", Tom replied curtseying.  "So you can clean all the windows and scrub the floors ? you have all week to do them!"  Tom wanted to cry.  Instead he curtsied.  "Yes Lady Hartley."  With that she left.

She was no sooner gone but Alice appeared.  "OK.  So now you need to clean the seven rooms and ensuites and make the beds", she ordered.  "Yes Miss Alice", Tom curtsied.  Alice went straight for the sofa in the drawing room which was normally Lady Hartley's domain.  She took the TV remote and lay back on the sofa.  "Quickly!" she said looking at her watch as she started surfing the channels.  "Yes Miss Alice", Tom curtsied.  She took out a packet of crisps and took a fistful, half of which fell on her lap.  She brushed them off.  Lady Hartley would have a fit if one crumb ended up on the sofa.
 
He was barely finished the last room when he heard the cars pull up.  The doorbell rang.  He flounced down the stairs, petticoats fluttering.  He steadied himself before opening the door.  Alice emerged from the drawing room and they bustled past Tom.  Several of them gave his outfit a sideways glance and smirked.

"Michelle, take their bags up to the rooms", she instructed.  "Yes Miss Alice."  Tom curtsied and her fellow students looked on in disbelief at his short maid's uniform and frilly apron.  He turned away and cringed, knowing that they would be smirking at his fluttering petticoats, the seams on his stockings and his impractical high heels.  He found himself desperately hoping that his seams were straight, trying to think when he last checked.

He picked up two suitcases.  What did they have in them?  They were so heavy.  But everyone had gone into the drawing room and left him with the mound of bags to be brought upstairs to the rooms.  "Five teas and three coffees when you've done that Michelle", Alice called out.  "Yes M?"  Tom was in mid curtsey but she slammed the drawing room door.  He trudged up the stairs with the first set of bags.

Naturally it took him a long time to bring all the bags to the rooms and then he had to make the tea and coffee.  When he finally brought the tray into the drawing room Alice just turned and said "about time!"  Tom was well conditioned by this stage to know his station and not to react.

Tom served the tea and coffee.  Alice and the students had started discussing their course.  Tom was really interested to hear the first intelligent conversation he'd encountered in months.  He thought he'd do a little dusting in the room as an excuse to linger and listen to the discussion.  He might even learn something about engineering.

He was dusting the shelves while keeping an ear to the conversation when Alice called him.  He minced over to her and curtsied.  "Turn around sweetie", she ordered.  He was puzzled but did what he was told, as ever.  "Bend forward", she instructed pushing him in the small of his back.  Tom cringed.  If he bent forward they would see his frilly knickers.  But he bent over obediently.  Alice lifted his petticoats.  Tom was mortified.  "As I thought sweetie.  The lace on your panties is coming away", she told him.  "You'd better go off and sew it."

Tom could hear the sniggering from the others.  Alice lowered his petticoats and he turned around.  "Yes Miss Alice", he confirmed, curtseying and lowering his gaze in embarrassment.  The weight of his false eyelashes made him flutter frustratingly.

He flounced out of the room.  He wasn't going to hear the students' conversation about engineering.  Instead he had to go and sew the lace on his frilly panties.

[DaraJaney]

The students were a right pain.  They all ordered drinks individually making Tom flounce back and forth the long walk to the kitchen in his high heels over and over.  No sooner would he serve a beer to one of them but another one would order a gin and tonic.  When he returned with the gin and tonic she would say "what, no lemon?" and Tom would totter all the way back to the kitchen, take one slice of lemon and bring it back.  Then Alice would say "I need a top up."

He caught snatches of the political conversation they were having.  They were on about workers' rights.  Tom was beginning to see how so many people, no matter what their background, fell easily into using and abusing a maid.  Of course his ridiculously demeaning appearance didn't do a lot to command respect.

Amid all this service for the guests he still had to fulfil the orders Lady Hartley left.  He had to clean all the windows.  This involved using a step ladder to reach the top panes.  This was particularly tricky in high heels.
One of the students always seemed to pass by when he was on the top step reaching up.  He knew they were getting a fine view up his skirt of his suspenders and frilly knickers but there was nothing he could do.  He tried scrambling down when someone appeared but his petticoats ballooned and he almost fell over in his heels.

Then he had to scrub the floors.  Lady Hartley insisted that the old floorboards and tiles had to be manually cleaned.  In the hallway he knelt and leaned forward to scrub.  He looked over his shoulder at the mirror and could see that his petticoats had ridden up enough to frame his frilly panties and that his suspenders had dragged his stocking seams off a little to the sides at the top.  He tried pushing his petticoats down at the back but there was basically no way he could scrub the floors and not show off his frilly underwear.  He just sighed and got down to work.

Of course, he had no sooner started but the drawing room door opened and a student came out, presumably heading for the bathroom.  Tom straightened up but could see the smirk on the student's face as he slowly strolled towards the bathroom hoping that the maid would lean forward again to continue scrubbing.

Well after that someone emerged from the drawing room every couple of minutes and Tom had to give up straightening up every time or he'd never get the job finished.  So he just continued leaning forward and scrubbing and letting them have their cheap thrills.

Tom didn't have a free moment from getting up in the morning to make their breakfasts until the early hours of the morning when they finally fell into a drunken stupor from the drinks he'd served them all evening.

Every day each room was like a tornado had hit it.  He had to tidy every room and make each bed.  He had to clean each bathroom ? most of which had vomit somewhere.  He lost count of how many used condoms he had to pick up.

At the end of the week Alice called Tom into the drawing room where they were all gathered.  He curtsied and stood before them, looking down through his false eyelashes, dreading her next order.  "We just wanted to show our thanks for you looking after us so well this week", she told him sweetly.  His eyes fluttered up in surprise and he looked around the room.  They were all smiling appreciatively.

"We got you a little something.  We hope you will like it", she told him, handing him a parcel with a card on top.  It looked like they were giving him a few books as a present.  Tom grew excited.  Some interesting reading at last!

He opened the card envelope.  It was a nice thank you card.  He looked inside the card and there was a voucher for a large amount.  He smiled.  It was a voucher for Betty's Beauty Parlour for a complete make-over: perm, nails painted, eyebrows plucked, lips plumped, legs waxed, the list went on.  Tom tried to keep the smile on his face.  He curtsied.  "Thank you so much."  They all smiled looking really pleased with themselves.

Then he remembered the books.  He quickly tore off the wrapping paper.  It was three volumes of "Good Housekeeping".  Again he tried to look pleased.  There were headlines on the front like: "keeping those petticoats poufy", "shifting the most stubborn stains".  Alice smiled sweetly at him.  "We thought they might help you in your career", she told him.

Career?  Oh no, he thought.  This is definitely temporary.  Then he wondered when was the last time his mother mentioned finding a replacement for him.  It must have been a couple of months.  They noticed his disappearing smile but he caught himself just in time.  He curtsied again.  "Thank you all."

They started gathering their things to go.  Tom was starting to feel relieved already.  "Don't forget to clean the rooms and bathrooms before Lady Hartley returns", Alice reminded him.  He sighed.

The students filed past him each thanking him.  He had to curtsey and return the compliment to each one.  Then he turned to look upstairs.  Seven bedrooms and bathrooms to return to mint condition in three hours!  No time to waste.  He flounced up the stairs clutching his feather duster.