//------------------------------//
// It's not easy 
// Story: Captivity 
// by Party Pop 
//------------------------------//

	Gold Soul walked along a street in Manehattan, his new pet beside him. He had spared no expense at the local pet store, and he had bought her all sorts of lovely things. She smiled when he did, but something seemed off... Something about her eyes, he was sure of it. There was almost a look of... Fear? That was the last thing he wanted to make his pet feel, but he would take care of it soon enough. They were almost home, after all, and he was sure that she would be happier there. After a little while, he stopped in front of a building. Pop looked up, past the storefront at the bottom, to see a lovely apartment. It even had a decent-sized balcony, with a miniature garden on it! She gasped slightly at the sight of it. It wasn't her special talent, but she adored plants all the same. Her aunt, AppleJack, probably had something to do with that. Her new master noticed her expression and smiled.

"Ah, yes. You noticed my garden, I see. That's just a small part of it. I used my magic to create a small pocket dimension up there, so it's actually much bigger than just that tiny patio space. It has all sorts of exotic plants, and lots of room for my sweet little kitten to play in!" he said, nuzzling her cheek gently as he wrapped a wing around her. She smiled, and scooted closer to him.

"I think I'm going to like it here, Master." She said, nuzzling him back. She was still a little wary, but she wanted so badly to trust him. He had already shown her so much kindness and love, in such a short time... It seemed almost too good to be true. As they walked into his home, the sheer beauty of it took her breath away. Since Gold Soul made a lot of money working for the government, he could afford to have the very best, and he most certainly did. Even the carpet seemed luxurious enough to deserve a pedigree. In fact, the carpet was so lush and soft, that the first thing Pop did was to roll around on it, rubbing her body all over its plush, silky softness. Gold Soul laughed at the sight, putting his shopping bags to the side.

"I buy you all manner of nice toys, treats, socks, blankets, and pillows, and the first thing you want to play with is the carpet?" He said, laughing. Pop sat up like a shot, her head down instinctively.

"I'm sorry, Master. I didn't mean to ignore your generosity. You can choose what I may play with instead." She said, feeling terrible for ignoring his gifts. He had been generous enough to take her into his home, and buy her lots of nice things, and she had already screwed up. Why couldn't she just be a good girl? She was quite surprised to feel a gentle wing wrapped around her.

"Hey, it's ok, Kitten. I wasn't upset at all! I just thought the way you rolled around on the carpet was very cute." He said, pulling her close to him and flooding her nostrils with his rich, warm musk. She nuzzled his chest gently, kneading on him with her little hooves. Gold smiled, happy to have put his kitten in a good mood. He let her go, grabbing some bags from the pile, and searching through them for something. Pop waited patiently, looking up into his gorgeous aqua eyes. Then, he pulled out something that she hadn't noticed him buying, and it took her breath away. It was a collar, but not just any collar. It was made of black silk, shimmering subtly under the light from the nearby window, and had a large silver bell on it. the edge was trimmed with a soft, slightly transparent pink fabric, which seemed to be something like taffeta, which was all ruffled up on the edge. It was the most beautiful collar she had ever seen. Gold Soul smiled, and looked into her eyes. Pop was barely able to speak from the love that she felt, making her chest want to burst.

"Is that... My collar, Master?" She asked, almost in a whisper. He stroked her cheek lovingly.

"Yes, it is. I want everyone to see how much I love my sweet, sweet kitten. I want to be able to take you on walks and have everypony know at a glance that you are the love of my life, my perfect treasure... My darling little kitten." He said, tears of love and joy sparkling in his eyes. Pop smiled, her eyes shining with loving tears of her own as he held up the collar, and gently tied it onto her neck, sealing their love forever with the knot as they looked into each other's eyes. Gold Soul hugged her close to him once more, kissing the top of her head gently, and thinking of how lucky he was to have this sweet little pet. And Pop couldn't help but feel the same for her new Master. For the first time on forever, Pop made a noise that she hadn't made for a very, very long time. It was small, but it meant the world to her new master, and showed to him quite clearly how she felt about him.

She was purring.