The judge turned to John, and demanded he stand, "Get on your feet you bug of a man" she sneered.

John stood, the clinking of the chains from his wrists reminding him he was a captive here among this room of vast goddesses.

"This beautiful woman took you in, provided for your miserable tiny self, protected you, gave you everything you could need in the world, and here you are attacking her in this... this manner of an animal?"

"Your honor", John began in an attempt to make his case.

"Silence! You are exactly the reason we have Reduction technology, to keep us safe from men like you. You are a violent worm of a man and I am inclined to grant any recategorization that Miss Smith would like." She turned to Carol, and asked "What category are you requesting your husband be recategorized into Miss Smith?"

Standing herself for the first time in the proceedings, she was tall in her attractive but professional suit jacket and pencil skirt. Her muscular calves flexed as she stood, and he saw she was wearing a pair of patent black peep-toe heels, shoes he himself had spent a whole exhausting day cleaning and polishing just earlier this week. They creaked slightly in the quiet courtroom as she straightened her intimidating posture.

"I want him to be recategorized to 'L' category your honor", and looked over to him with a smile on her glossy lips, she was having fun, to her this was a game and he was the prey.

In the last few years reduced humans were categorized based on the reason why they are reduced, and the resulting rights they received in society. Some were 'C' category for criminals, they lost many legal and equality-based rights, but they were still considered people. John was fairly rare, a 'V' category: Voluntary. Technically he should have all the rights of a normal sized person, although of course reality living with Carol was somewhat different.

But when he heard Carol's request for 'L' category, his stomach finally rebelled, he leaned forward doubled over and wretched over his feet. He had had nothing to eat and so only dry heaved, but he was utterly destroyed by what Carol had requested. 'L' category was Livestock. He would be legally owned, an animal in the eyes of the law. No human rights at all, he could be forced to work to death, tortured if desired, killed or maimed with no protection or restriction of any kind. And beyond that, it would be completely and utterly legal and proper for Carol to consume him. And there was nothing he could do about it. He was about to become property of his wife.

"I can think of no reason not to grant your request Miss Smith." Said the judge. "By the power vested in me by the federal court, you, Reduced John Thompson hereby cease to exist as a human entity, all rights and privileges entitled to people of this country are withdrawn and nullified,  you are reclassified from this moment onward as a category 'L' entity: Livestock. And the ownership of this property is to be one Miss Carol Smith, formerly your wife, now your owner." And with a bang of her gavel, the deed was done. John Thompson's existence ended, and he became now a helpless lump of living meat, belonging mind body and soul to his cruel, and domineering, wife.

Carol was still standing in the courtroom for the proclamation, her toes curled with excitement in her shoes, she had a headrush of excitement at how well this had gone, it was so easy. She was going to have so much fun.

"Your honor, if I may..." She started, "Is this court able to brand new livestock?" She asked with a wry smile.

John's looked at over at his new owner, what hellish game was this she was starting now?

"Yes of course, we can arrange for that immediately, my assistant has the iron somewhere" and a young intern, couldn't be more than 18 years old stood from the side of the room and started rummaging around in a drawer.

"Thank you so much your honor" Carol said, "I do want to make sure it is aware of its new category, and of course in case it ever escapes we want anyone to know it easily".

"No problem at all, Jessica can do that for you now, and then we will let you get on your way"

John could see what the young intern was preparing, and he started struggling against the chains connecting him from his wrists to the desk, first a small tug, then an increasingly desperate series  of struggles against his bonds as the realization set in.

Jessica, a very pretty blonde girl, presumably a law student, had finished setting up a metal rod with a disc on the end the size of John's head. She walked toward him across the wooden floor of the courtroom, her knee-high boots making a shuddering bang with each step. As she got closer the desk to which he was bound increasingly shook with her footfalls, until she was there in front of him, looking down.

"Please, there's no need for this, he pleaded to the teen goddess now in front of him wielding the electric branding iron". He was puling repeatedly at his shackles while he looked up. She smiled in supreme confidence down at him and flicked a switch in the handle of the branding wand. In seconds the smell of hot metal filled the air.

"Please don't, I am a person, I *am*, and you have no right to..." 

"Nope..." Interrupted the girl, hand on hip, "You - " she gesticulated with the wand toward him, "are a teeny, tiny, animal. As of one minute ago, weren't you listening?" And with that she cracked into a giggle...

The wand in her hand beeped.

"Ok... it's ready", she smiled and reached down roughly exposing his entire back and buttocks, holding him to the desk, it happened so suddenly that John was winded with the slam to the floor, coughing doubly so as he was overwhelmed by the perfume from her wrist at the same time. Her fingers alone were easily capable of holding down this inch long man bug. She raised the wand in her other hand and started to bring it down slowly over his struggling body - but then -

"Wait!" Shouted Carol, pausing the process, the branding wand a mere moment from touching him, John could feel the heat from it so close to his back, he was sweating and panting in terror. But thank god, Carol had seen sense, this was just a game after all... he knew she wouldn't push things so far as to disfigure him so permanently.

The intern, still paused above him, turned back to see Carol walk slowly toward the defendant's desk. The click clack of her heels, the slight creak of her feet inside the patent leather, John couldn't see anything but he could hear her approach. 

She arrived looking over the desk, looking down at him, even larger and taller than the intern she stood next to. Two goddesses looking down at a bug that wiggled before them.

"I just wanted to watch." She said nonchalantly... "Go ahead..." She continued with an arrogant smirk on her face.

John's stomach dropped, and then a moment later he was consumed by searing pain turning him inside out that would not end. The girl pushed the brand into his tiny back and held it there for what seemed like forever. John squealed and squealed in agony like a stuck pig, his eyes wide and mad with pain, and still it continued, seconds passed in this agony, his screams grew hoarser and hoarser and then mute, allowing him to hear the sniggering of the girl torturing above him. Until finally, she relented.

He curled into a ball, shaking violently. Spanning the entirety of his back in violent and thick red burns was a circle with the letter 'L' inside.

"Livestock" said the girl as she took a step back with a proud look on her face.

"Heh," smirked Carol as she hunkered down and brought her giant face close to the desk surface to look into the creased and bloodshot eyes or her once-husband... "more like 'Loser', she said with a grin".