A Volunteer From the Audience (M/F)

[goodgulf]

A Volunteer From the Audience (M/F)

"Please, please if you would just settle down. Please, if you would take your seats. Yes, I know the news is shocking, but if you don't take your seats we can't begin."

Assistant Principle Glen Howard had to repeat himself several times before order was established. He took the time to rearrange his notes on his lectern.

'These parents.' Glen thought. 'Some of them are worse than their offspring, and that's saying something!'

Finally, an illusion of order was established. The audience was still talking among itself but Assistant Principle Howard thought that things were settled enough to start.

"Thank you for your co-operation, and thank you for taking the time to come here tonight. The school always welcomes input and is happy when parents take an active interest in their children's education." Glen intoned, then mentally added: 'Happy and shocked beyond belief.'

He couldn't say those words out loud, but they were true ones. Most meetings just brought the same eight parents who were there more to play politics than discuss how their children were doing. But for tonight's meeting the room was almost packed.

"Get on with it!"

"Yeah, get to the point!"

"Are you trying to stonewall us here?"

"Where's the meeting's agenda? It can't be an official meeting without an agenda!"

"To the point." Glen agreed. "Due to circumstances beyond our control..."

A ragged choir called out "Bullshit!" as over a dozen people tried to be the first to voice the thought.

"Who did you vote for?"

"The school's behind this, isn't it?"

"Who's really behind it?"

"Hail Eris! All Hail Discordia!

"Who's Eris? What's his position on the issue?"

'Beyond our control." Glen repeated, shooting a glance at Peggy Jackson. The woman had the gall to stick her tongue out at him. He knew her well enough to recognise her 'all hail Discordia' cat call. "As some of you might remember, the voters voted 87% in favour of proposition 532. After that overwhelming show of support the state legislature felt it had no choice but to pass it."

In truth, they hadn't. Previous administrations had vacated their obligations, leaving the 'tough choices' to the voters. In the current divisive climate, any proposition that got more than 50% was likely to become law and the law read that any proposition that garnered more than 75% of the vote had to be adopted verbatim by the legislature.

Not that the legislature needed to be told to get in front of a popular proposal. No, if a voter initiative had more than 70% support then politicians would fight to get their name on it. Case in point, the current law had over a hundred co-sponsors. At least before the bad press started; now not a single politician was on record supporting in. If the wind changed again then the politicians would claim they had behind it along, at least until the public's mood shifted again.

"I didn't vote for it!"

"I was against from the start."

"The question was confusing."

"All hail chaos!"

"The ballot was designed to deceive people!"

"And another thing, the Reverend Hacket changed his position on it."

"People, please! If we can focus for a moment."

Glen repeated himself until the muttering settled down a bit.

"Thank you. Thank you. Now that I have your attention again, we can go over the new law and how it impacts the school." Glen paused briefly for effect. Only briefly because he didn't want to risk anyone interrupting again. "The law gives us very little discretion. It outline a strict procedure that we are legally bound to uphold. Perhaps things would run better if we worked out an example. Can I have a volunteer from the audience? Anyone? Anyone at all?"

There were cat calls, rude suggestions, until Peggy Jackson raised her hand, stood, and walked to the stage to stand next to the desk that Glen (and the maintenance worker) had drug there for the presentation.

"Thank you for your..."

"Anything to speed this up." Peggy Jackson said tartly. "I want to get home tonight, not tomorrow."

"Um, well thank you any way." Glen said, offering her a weak smile. "Um, back to the procedure. The 'Parental Responsibility Act' is quite clear. Should your child be disruptive in class, fail to hand in homework, be more tardy than eight times in the same month, miss more than six days without a medical excuse, fail to maintain a D plus average, fail to pass the state testing requirements, or trigger the act in one of 18 other specific ways, a note will be sent home from school. Should the note be ignored, that is, not returned and acted upon within nine business days, a court summons will be issued for one or both of the parties. As to what acting upon the notice, um, entails, um, well..."

Glen turned to Peggy Jackson and cleared his voice.

"For the purposes of this exercise, we will be assuming that one of, um, your name...."

"Peggy Jackson." Peggy Jackson said with a smile.

"Yes, course, I should have remembered that. We will be assuming that one of Ms. Jackson's children's had a note sent home and Ms. Jackson has arrived at school to clear up the problem caused by her son or daughter."

"This charge is a pure outrage. It's false, completely bogus. My child didn't do it and even if he or she did it, there's a completely reasonable excuse. Reasonable, no, justifiable! Virtually required. A completely laudable act - if he or she did it and I'm not saying that he or she did." Peggy Jackson declared.

Glen cleared his voice and tried to pretend that he hadn't heard rants like that one from virtually every parent in attendance tonight (and most of the parents who had skipped this meeting). Most of the parents who offspring had gotten in trouble had screamed rants even worse than this one.

"Um, thank you for getting in to your role here."

"Oh it's nothing." Peggy Jackson smiled. "I was the lead, well, the co-lead, well, practically the co-lead in my school's senior play. And I've done some acting since then. I really enjoy doing this type of roleplaying thing."

"Um, well, to business. Now after she says her piece, then I, or the school official handling the matter, will review the student's file and verify that the correct procedures were followed. Note that the alleged offence will not be reviewed, only the process. Since we are dealing with the parent and not the student the actual situation can not be discussed or reviewed at this point in the process. Now to return to the exercise."

Glen turned back to Peggy Jackson.

"Now we have reviewed the situation and unfortunately the law does not allow me any discretion in this matter. If you would please bend over the desk?"

Peggy Jackson looked at him, questioning.

"You did volunteer, didn't you?" Glen asked.

"I supposed I did." Peggy Jackson nodded.

The room went quiet as Peggy Jackson bent over the desk. Glen removed a paddle from his lectern. Holding it up, he continued.

"As you can see, this isn't what people think of when they think of a school paddle. It's more like something that people used to sell at roadside stands. Of course, it's since it's not for students it doesn't have to be an official student type paddle."

Turning to Peggy Jackson, Glen raised the paddle and brought it down on the taut seat of Peggy Jackson's fashionable dress.

"Ouch! Does it have to be so hard?" Peggy Jackson complained.

"We are roleplaying this example out." Glen reminded her. "You did volunteer."

"I suppose I did and OH! I wasn't ready." Peggy Jackson complained.

"The demonstration has to be realistic." Glen replied, bringing the paddle down again.

And again.

He delivered a total of five smacks.

"And that was the standard first notice." Glen told the shocked onlookers.

"Well I'm sure that it wouldn't happen again." Peggy Jackson said, straightening out.

"We aren't done yet." Glen cautioned. "This is just phase one."

"Phase one?"

"Phase one." Glen confirmed. "We have to show what happens when a second notice is sent."

"But..."

"You did volunteer." Glen pointed out, then he turned to the audience. "The next stage involves less covering."

"Oh, that." Peggy Jackson said in an exasperated tone. "Well, I suppose I did volunteer."

As she turned, Peggy Jackson tugged up her dress, one that was fashionably slit on the side. With that slit it was almost easy for her to raise her dress over her waist. Whistles and catcalls came from the audience, but Peggy Jackson laughed them off.

Then Glen brought the paddle down again, silencing the laughter.

"Oh that smarts!" Peggy Jackson said, chuckling through the pain. "Is it because I'm wearing less?"

"That or because of the previous smacks." Glen said, bringing the paddle down again.

"Oh! I definitely don't like this." Peggy Jackson exclaimed.

"That is the point." Glen told her. "Negative reinforcement to encourage you to prepare your child or children to excel."

"Oh! That smarts! And what if I were to refuse to participate?" Peggy Jackson asked, grimacing in pain.

"Then I'm sorry to say that a sheriff's deputy will be called." Glen informed the crowd, not pausing the paddling. "You will be written up and if you still refuse to cooperate then the deputy will place you under arrest. It all comes down to a choice; cooperate or serve 10 days in the county lockup."

"Oh! Oh! That was five and that smarts! It really hurts!" Peggy Jackson squealed. "Oh, I've learned my lesson! When I get home my son or daughter is going to get twice this."

"Oh no, you can't do that." Glen admonished. "If this wasn't a roleplaying exercise then I would be forced to report you to child services. The law is clear about that. Crystal clear."

"But..." Peggy Jackson seemed confused as she bent over the desk. "But isn't that the point? That the parent gets paddled and then goes home and..."

Glen didn't let her finish.

"Then the parent goes home and inspires the errant child to mend his or her ways." Glen said firmly. "Presumably in a manner that does not involve corporal punishment."

"Oh, of course." Peggy Jackson said. "I was just getting into my role. So I can get up now?"

"I'm sorry, but there's what happens when there's a third offence inside of a month. Phase three, if you're up for it." Glen told her.

"Well, I suppose I did volunteer." Peggy Jackson said, giving a self depreciating laugh. "My own fault not establishing what I was volunteering for. Go ahead, show us all phase three."

There were wild spread gasps when Glen lowered the woman's panties, exposing a mass of pink and red splotches. Silence reigned as he applied five stinging swats with the paddle. Peggy Jackson whistled in pain as each swat landed.

"Wow, I'm glad there's only three phases!" Peggy Jackson exclaimed, reaching her right hand back towards her panties.

Glen intercepted her hand.

"I'm afraid there are more phases." Glen said. "Each additional phase increases the number of swats by five, up to a total of 20."

"You mean ten, fifteen, then twenty?" Peggy Jackson squealed in dismay.

"Since the first fifteen have always landed, we can count them. That means there are only five more to go. If you're up for it?"

"Well, I suppose I volunteer and OHHH AAH OOH AHH AHH!"

After the fifth swat landed, Peggy Jackson's hands shot back to protect her bottom.

"Um, well, you've broken position." Glen noted. "That means, well, if this was phase one then it would mean two more swats. But it isn't, this is phase five and breaking position after phase three means we have to start again."

"But... But we're just roleplaying!" Peggy Jackson protested.

"Yes, but we're roleplaying phase six." Glen said, moving her hands off the target area. "If you want, you can request assistance in maintaining position."

"That might be best." Peggy Jackson nodded.

Glen signalled and the head of the English department, Anne Debison, took the stage and took hold of Peggy Jackson's arms.

Twenty swats fell in rapid succession. Anne Debison had to fight to hold Peggy Jackson in position as Glen peppered Peggy Jackson's bottom with the paddle.

The audience did its part, counting out the swats. They didn't start counting the first one but someone said "three" as the third one fell and by the time the ten swat landed the whole room was counting along.

"Vice Principal Howard?" Anne Debison said as the twentieth swat landed. "She didn't cooperate with being held. What does the procedure say to when that happens?"

"Non-cooperation calls for two special swats." Glen declared. Without checking with Peggy Jackson, he delivered thigh swats that landed halfway to her knees.

Then he pulled up Peggy Jackson's panties and helped her off the desk.

The woman's eyes were wet with tears as she adjusted her dress down.

"Wow, that was a full demonstrate." Peggy Jackson sniffed, rubbing at her seat. "If you don't mind, I think I'll stand for the rest of your presentation."

"Um, actually, the procedure calls for the parent to sit for a lecture on the child's faults." Glen said apologetically. "I suppose we could call you sitting for the rest of the evening the last piece of the procedure."

"Sit? Now?"

"You've come almost to the end of the procedure." Glen began.

Then there came calls from the audience.

"You volunteered."

"What's sitting after that?"

"Why ruin things by not taking the last step?"

"You did volunteer."

Peggy Jackson nodded to the audience, then took her seat - wincing as she did. She sniffed and squirmed throughout the rest of the meeting, which went almost an hour later than it was scheduled to. It seemed that every time Glen tried to bring the meeting to close someone would stand and ask a variation of question that had already been asked. As the meeting dragged, Glen ignored the pointed looks that these questioners gave Peggy Jackson's wiggling form. Maybe they were just wasting time to make her sit longer but school policy said he had to answer their questions.

Later, as the meeting broke up, Anne Debison made a point of thanking Peggy Jackson for volunteering. In a loud voice she pointed out that if Peggy Jackson hadn't volunteered then Anne herself would have had to take the stage. That she had even worn an easy to raise skirt in anticipation of the need.

This news sent many pairs of eyes to Anne Debison's skirt. More particularly to the seat of her skirt and its bottom, which fell well above where the thigh smacks had landed on Peggy Jackson legs. More than a few men mentally pictured Anne Debison leaving the meeting with swat marks visible on the back of her legs. Some even regretted that Peggy Jackson had volunteered. Not that Peggy Jackson was hard to look at, but an English teacher was an English teacher.


Glen's posted schedule was shot. The meeting had ran more than an hour late and Glen needed to spend another twenty minutes helping the maintenance worker restore things to their proper order. The maintenance worker didn't really care how long it took; he was getting overtime to be here, unlike Glen who was (like the rest of the teaching and administrative staff) on a straight salary. Then Glen had to exchange a few words with Anne Debison, who seemed very relieved that she hadn't been called upon to help with the demonstration.

"But just to be clear, if we do this again and I'm call on to assist, we are only demonstrating phase one." Anne Debison informed him. "Anything more than that and my union rep gets involved. The law gives qualified immunity for the paddling of parents, not teacher nor students."

"But you said you picked out that skirt especially..."

"I lied." Anne Debison admitted. "It was the least I could after that poor woman volunteered to take the maximum. Of course, I know why she did it."

"You do really?" Glen inquired.

"Didn't you hear her? She had been in her school play and has done amateur acting since then." Anne Debison smirked. "She would do anything to get on stage again, back in the limelight."

"Ah, I see." Glen smiled. "To quote: 'Living in the Limelight / the universal dream.' That sort of thing."

"Yes, the Bard nailed that one." Anne Debison nodded.

Glen didn't bother correcting her mistaken attribution. He still had too much work he could do before he left.


Later he drove home.

The drive was longer than he would have liked, but to honest he wouldn't be a homeowner if he hadn't bought a house sight unseen at a foreclosure auction that had covered half a housing division. The previous owners had walked away from an underwater mortgage, turning the keys over the bank. He had never met them but thought they had possessed wonderful taste. They had turned one bedroom in to home office, another in to a reading room, and a third in to some sort of art studio, meaning that his "one bedroom" sight unseen house was really a four bedroom one.

Best of all, the previous owners hadn't trashed the place when they moved out. The lack of neighbours was disturbing part of the time but welcome at other times.

Like tonight.


As expected, there was a light on in the house when he pulled into the driveway. Glen smiled when he found Peggy Jackson curled up on his couch.

"How was it for you?" Glen asked.

"Perfect." Peggy Jackson cooed. "Being paddle in public then made to sit and squirm, I'm surprised that I didn't soak through my dress. And everyone was so mean! Making me sit there and then dragging out the meeting."

"I'm sure half the men couldn't stand up to leave until their hardons faded." Glen told her. "Now did you want more with the paddle or should I switch to the strap?"

"Your hand should be enough." Peggy Jackson smiled. "Have you ever thought what might happen if we took this thing public?"

"Hmm, let's see." Glen said, pretending to think. "First, I'd probably be fired. Then someone would pour over every mark that your children were ever given. Just to be sure, they would probably lower them by ten or fifteen percent on general principles. Oh, and you'd have your lifestyle outed. Everyone would know that you love having your luscious little bottom smacked."

"Well we can't have that now can we?" Peggy Jackson purred. "A review like that could keep my kids out of college. But do you think we could do that demonstration again?"

"Of course not." Glen said firmly. "Once was pushing it. If we did it again then we'd need a different volunteer. Otherwise everyone would suspect."

"Oh by Eris we can't have that." Peggy Jackson said in mock horror. Then she thought for a moment. "But it would be interesting to see which of the women would jump forward."

"Or men." Glen commented. "I hate picturing the first man who comes to my office. I've never been into male on male action."

"Your office." Peggy Jackson purred, removing her dress as she spoke. "I can't wait to be summoned there. It will have to be something that won't show up on their permanent records."

"There are twenty-four different infractions. I'm sure that we can come up with something." Glen smiled, removing his tie. "We just can't make it more than once week. Maybe three times a month at most. And not always for the maximum."

"Ah, you're no fun anymore." Peggy Jackson pouted.

"Come over here and I'll show you how much fun I can be." Glen promised.

And he did.

Goodgulf

[johncook]

You made it too clear that this was a setup. Next time have someone who doesn't want to be spanked and have her held in place,

[goodgulf]

Thank you for taking the time to comment.

Yes, I did drop clues and include foreshadowing - mainly because I couldn't see writing the story of a woman forced to take a spanking only to reveal later that she had wanted one.

Goodgulf

[goodgulf]

Edited and fixed typos on April 13, 2013.

Goodgulf