Anthony doesn't care about Myriam, and Marc does. Furthermore, Anthony doesn't care about Myriam's consent, and Marc does. Therefore, Marc is not like Anthony in the ways that matter. If he treats Myriam in a way which is superficially similar to how Anthony treated her, but does it with her consent and they both enjoy it, then there's no problem.
The problem with Anthony wasn't that he talked down to Myriam, or even that he smacked her. It was that he did those things without any regard for how she felt and whether or not she consented.
I don't recall Zorlun ever saying that the "Marc dom" route would lead to a bad ending. Unless he's said that, we don't know how that path might end.
First, it's not a certainty that Katherine will ever find out about Myriam and Marc. Second, as already stated, Marc is not treating Myriam just like Anthony did. If Katherine found out about Myriam and Marc, and she could be persuaded to accept that the two of them have a sexual relationship of any kind, then she could be persuaded to accept that they have a Dom/sub relationship.
Again, saying that Marc's current way of treating Myriam is the same as Anthony's, or that it's on the way to becoming the same as Anthony's, is a superficial view. In the ways that matter, Marc does not treat Myriam as Anthony did.
And I don't recall saying that being a dom means treating the sub as a piece of shit. But let's be clear that being a good dom
does mean treating your sub harshly, if your sub likes and wants harsh treatment and doesn't like or want "nice" treatment. If you are a dom, and your sub doesn't want nice treatment, but you insist on treating them nicely, then you are a bad dom, just like you're a bad dom if you treat your sub harshly, regardless of your sub not wanting harsh treatment.
In BDSM and Dom/sub, it's important to remember that there is no formula which is the "right" formula. What matters is the rules, and the only real rules are:
- No one is harmed. This does not mean that no one feels pain. It means that no harm is done which would constitute an injury.
- All parties are freely consenting to everything that is done. This also requires all parties to be capable of freely giving meaningful consent.
- Each party is concerned with the welfare and satisfaction of all other parties.
As long as those three rules are kept, each couple or group can decide all of the other rules for that couple or group. And what works for one couple or group may not work for another. Consenting adults may decide for themselves.
