"I… I don't think I've ever been here before," Allison said, looking all around.
"Not too many have, Allison. Only the help and one or two of the girls."
Allison saw the courtyard was walled in. It was huge, probably covering half an acre of ground. At the two corners of the walls were two large towers soaring up to high peaks. She had seen these towers from the road and had wondered as to their use. She had tried to find out from her companions and her teachers but no one seemed to know or really care.
"Did you study any medieval history in your high school?" Erika said, walking slowly before the girl, her hands clasped behind her back. She was staring up at the walls, her eyes gleaming with something like excitement.
"A little," Allison confessed, fascinated with the massive construction confronting her.
"Then you know this was a bailey. It's the courtyard of the inner fortifications. The founder of this school, Birgit Nileson, had the stones shipped from Denmark piece by piece. Some of the stones were lost, so this part of the castle is slightly modified. This is the keep…" Erika pointed, moving toward another part of the courtyard.
"What?"
"It's the mast heavily fortified building in the castle. It housed four hundred men and women rather comfortably, although now we store things in it. You girls live considerably better now in your dorms than the highest nobility did in those days."
Erika smiled as they neared the keep. Allison followed, her heart beating like a triphammer for no apparent reason. She sensed something was coming to a head, something that would change her life completely. But what it was she didn't know.
"Come with me," Erika said, smoothing her hands down her sides and approaching a large door.
Allison felt her pulse racing as the woman took a ring from her belt and opened the door to the keep. It was dark inside. There was a flicking sound and a small yellow light illuminated the dank corridor.
What on earth was going on? Why was she being taken down into this awful-looking and smelling building?
"Come."
Allison followed her down a narrow flight of stone stairs into a huge, wood-paneled room. At that point the girl felt her hands and feet turn icy. Cold sweat beaded on her forehead while her heart pounded. It couldn't be real! This had to be her horrible imagination, a trick of some sort, something to frighten the girls with.
"Surprised, dear?"
Allison looked at the headmistress. She was standing there, having hung the ring of keys on a small peg to one side. She was shutting the door, bolting it, and then turned around to lean against the frame. Erika folded her hands over her tits, crossing one leg over the other and staring with some amusement at the terrified girl.
And there was much to frighten Allison. Hanging on the walls of the small room were strange, frightening-looking instruments – riding crops, bits, bridles, cat-o'-nine-tails, whips of varying lengths and thicknesses, harnesses, and other things that baffled the young girl as to their use. The smell of leather wafted about like a heady perfume. Instinctively the girl backed away from the headmistress, folding her arms over her tits, wishing she could somehow drop through the floor and never, never come back to this awful, horrible place!
"You see, Allison, we can't have girls sneaking things into the school. It has a demoralizing effect on the other children," Erika began reaching up and undoing the tight blonde bun sifting atop her head. The pins fell lightly to the cold, concrete floor. "You have got to be taught a lesson, a lessen that will last and will bring you in line with our policy."
Allison didn't like where this conversation was going.
"Now, remove your clothing – all of it," Erika said, pausing as she pushed back her long blonde hair and looked severely at the girl.
What had she said? Take off her clothes? Stand there stark-naked in front of her? What in God's name was she telling her to do? No, no she wouldn't, wouldn't stoop to that level.
"No!" Allison said defiantly, her body shaking violently.
Erika smiled, that same awful smile that had crossed her lips earlier in the office.
"I didn't expect you to be cooperative… at first," she said, squaring her shoulders and approaching the terrified teen.
Allison shrank back, feeling her flesh crawl.
"Ohhhh!"
She had stumbled backward, her feet hitting a large wooden keg with a small brass faucet in it. Regaining her balance once more she backed away from the approaching headmistress, her eyes wide with terror. What was Miss Vennestroom going to do to her? She could only guess it would be awful, the most awful experience in her young life!
"N-n-no, don't hurt me. I swear, I won't be bad again. Please," Allison begged, her voice becoming shaky and tiny.
"I can't take your word anymore, Allison. You'd only go back, on it unless you knew what to expect down here. From now on you'll be good, I promise you." With that the older woman stretched out one hand and grabbed Allison by the hair.
"Ooohhh!"
The pain brought the girl to her knees. Her head was pulled forward, the hair ripping from her scalp. Allison shrieked, her cries bouncing off the thick walls and mocking her. Tears washed down her flushed cheeks as Erika kept tugging at her hair.
"Little bitch!" Erika hissed, pulling her hair and dragging her across the room on her knees. "I'll teach you to bring that stuff in here and try to spoil my school."
Oh, she was calling her awful names and accusing her of things she hadn't even done! Why was she doing this, hurting her like this? Allison screamed, tried to get back up on her feet, then stumbled and fell to her knees once more, her hair still pulled straight out by Erika.
"Noooo."
Erika let her go, throwing the girl back on the floor. For a tail slender woman the headmistress had a good deal of strength and dexterity. Allison scooted back on her ass, her uniform twisting around her little body. She scrambled toward the door, twisting around and standing up, her hair streaming wildly behind her.
Locked! Oh God, it was locked! She rattled the bolt, curling her fingers into fists and finally pounding at the door. Wouldn't someone hear her cries, her screams for help?
"Don't bother, my dear," Erika said, regaining some of her former composure. "I told you few people come back in the bailey or here to the keep. And those who do," she added, the cruel smile returning, "wouldn't bother coming to your aid."
Allison felt a wave of defeat crush her to the floor. Turning around once more, she saw the headmistress' mocking eyes and felt another flash of terror.
"Now, take off your clothes before I tear them off," Erika said, her voice hardening.
Sobbing, feeling embarrassed at having to strip before and older woman, Allison did as she was told. Neatly she lay the blazer on a near-by chair, unbuttoning her blouse slowly and finally turning away from Erika, sliding the white cotton garment off.
"Good, good," Erika encouraged, her voice sounding strangely breathless.
Slipping off her shoes and white socks, Allison then slid her straight black skirt down over her white, supple thighs, laying it neatly on top of the blazer and blouse. She was standing now only in her bra and translucent nylon panties.
What was Erika planning to do to her? She saw those horrible instruments hanging on the wall and shuddered once more. Beating? Was she going to truss her up in one of those awful looking harnesses and beat her like some kind of farm animal?
"Over here."
The headmistress' voice was still calm, steady. She was pointing to a strange contraption at the other end of the room. It was what appeared to be a double stockade, looking much like the ones she'd seen in picture books about early New England. However instead of having just one hole for the head there were two, obviously meant for the arms. Below there were two more holes for the legs. On either side of the tall piece of wood were braces to keep it in place.