A Second Chance

It was bad enough that he had paddled her in front of the rest of the class. Not that she minded the paddling itself; Mr Smith was almost gentle about it. Sure, it stung but she had no problem sitting at her desk for the remainder of the lesson. She was careful to sit quietly, though; she doubted he would show the same restraint if she earned a second dose.

It was the embarrassment that had been the worst part. After six months at the reformatory, she had more or less gotten used to the painful methods of discipline.  However, most of the punishments were meted out either in private or to an entire group- only rarely was a girl singled out for an offence or worse, to make an example.  It had only happened to her twice, and both had been within her first week here, both incidents clearly designed to show her that though she maybe an adult, here she would be treated as a wayward schoolgirl. She quickly learned that it was best to mind her behaviour, though occasionally she would still be punished along with the class when she was unable to resist the pull of mischief to break the monotony. It had been several weeks since her last paddling, and she was grateful he hadn’t used his full strength. It had hurt enough as it was.

And now on top of that she was facing another spanking at bedtime, thanks to the reformatory’s take on the old “spanked at school, spanked at home” policy.  Every teacher that had cause to spank a student in class paid a visit to their room that evening for a less-than-gentle reminder of the earlier lesson. The thin walls of the dormitory let the sound of the nocturnal punishments be heard by all the students, though at least this time no one would be watching. And at least now she was glad it was only her; when a whole class was spanked, she hated the mounting tension as she heard the sounds of punishment creep closer room by room as the teacher dealt with her fellow inmates.

Shannon glared up at the strap hanging on the wall for use at these occasions. It was supposedly hung there as a constant reminder to behave, as though the constantly throbbing bottoms weren’t reminder enough.

Yes, she thought as she squirmed, she had learned her lesson, no amount of money she could have gained from her little scam could be worth this.  Still, she was grateful to have avoided an actual prison sentence. She was barely an adult, and shuddered to think of what would have happened to her in a more traditional penal establishment.

She took the strap down and hefted it. It seemed so simple a thing, thin and flexible.  It may have seemed harmless, though she knew better. At the sound of footsteps in the hall, she hastily rehung the implement on its hook and shuffled to her desk, hoping to appear focused on her work when the teacher arrived.

As he entered the room, she heaved a sigh, stood, and flopped down on her desk, raising her skirt behind her by way of a greeting. She’d learned not to hesitate; when the teachers had several students to punish, they didn’t respond well when one dallied.  It was best not to annoy the person on the other end of the strap.

“There’s no need for that,” she heard him say. Confused, she looked around at him.

“Have a seat,” he instructed when she didn’t move, “or remain standing if you prefer, though it looks like you’ve minded yourself this afternoon and shouldn’t find that task too trying. Still, your choice, but I want to talk to you face to face first.”

The break in the ritual caught her off guard. True, Mr. Smith had never visited her room before, but with every other instructor the steps were always the same. Teacher enters, student bends, teacher spanks, then lights out with a sore bottom. Simple, and, supposedly, effective.

“I wanted to talk to you first,” he offered by way of explanation. She felt an odd reassurance at his implication that her punishment was coming, the universe hadn’t been turned completely upside down.

“What happened today?” he asked.

She knew what he was referring to, but hesitated to respond. She knew she should have been paying attention in class, but the material was not new to her. Plus, everyone knew he spent the entire period writing on the board, so she felt assured she wouldn’t get caught in her bit of fun.

“I didn’t mean any harm by it,” she offered. He glared at her over the rim of his spectacles until she shifted uncomfortably and continued. “I finished a page of notes, and was going to file it. When you tear the pages out, they leave little strips behind, so I folded it.  They make great springs, I’ve been doing it since I was young. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble, but Amy was curious. I showed her how to do it, but someone bumped my desk and it just sort of flew across the room. I didn’t mean to. . ” she rambled, blushing as she remembered the paper spring bouncing clear to the front of the room and striking the blackboard.

“While I can appreciate your. . .industriousness, I would take it as a kindness if you did not let your extracurricular endeavors disrupt my class,” he replied sternly.  “Tell me, do you find your courses here challenging?”

Shannon was unsure of where he was heading with this, but as it seemed a rather benign topic for a scolding, she hastily replied. “In some ways, though the coursework is far easier than my school.  If school had been more like this I may have continued.”

“I see,” he replied. “I suspected as much.  You have potential, and if you’re willing, I could speak with the warden about setting a course of independent study for you. You have what, two more years here? If you apply yourself, you may well have a degree to your name by the time your sentence is complete.”

“A degree?” Shannon asked, unable to believe her ears. Her parents had sent her to a spendy boarding school with the intention that it would whip her into a shape that would be suitable for university scholarships. Shannon had rebelled, just barely skating through her courses and almost failing to graduate.  Looking back now, she had to admit it was a foolish waste, though she never imagined that she would be given a second chance.

“Yes, though I’d say you’ll need to apply yourself quite a bit more than you have recently. If this is something that you want to pursue, I will be keeping a very close eye on you. It is an independent study course only in that no other classmates will be joining you. You will, however, benefit from the strictest supervision this institution has to offer, as well as my personal attention. You have the aptitude, though I’m not sure if you have the discipline required for this type of study, not yet anyway.”

Worried that her chance might be slipping away, Shannon quickly replied, “I’ll work harder, I promise. I’d like to try.”

For the first time since entering the room, he smiled. “Very well, Report to my classroom straight after breakfast. I’ll speak with the warden first thing in the morning to make arrangements.  Though I’m warning you now, this type of arrangement is very difficult to maintain. With the number of girls here continuing to rise, these independent programs are a strain on resources. Do not make me regret this decision.”

“I won’t, Sir,” Shannon said through a big grin.

“Very well. Over my knee, then. It’s getting late.”

“What? Sir?” Shannon hastily added the honorific, having completely forgotten the punishment she was due.

“I don’t believe the strap is necessary, this time. However, I’ll be visiting regularly and if your work habits are not satisfactory it will get good use soon enough.” he replied, patting his lap.

Shannon made her way over to him, still caught up in the opportunity to earn a degree to contemplate the impending spanking. As he helped her settle into position and began to administer the chastisement, her mind was rapidly brought back to the present.  Her bottom began to sting, not requiring many slaps or much force to reignite the burn left by the paddle.  As she squirmed on his knee, she was grateful he had opted for an alternative to the strap.  It felt far more personal and more embarrassing, though after being paddled for the first time in a while she was happy to trade humiliation for pain on this occasion. Even as she kicked in protest, she tried to restrain herself. She had no doubt she was benefiting from the same restraint he had shown before, and had no desire to provoke a more severe chastisement.

He drew the spanking to a close after only a few minutes and set her back on her feet. “This is by far the lightest punishment I have ever given. I hope you use this opportunity to get a good night’s sleep, because starting tomorrow your days will become far more busy.  I will not hesitate to repeat this exercise at a higher intensity tomorrow if I am not satisfied with how you are getting on,” he warned sternly as he got up to leave.

Shannon nodded, beginning to wonder about the consequences of this decision for her bottom. True, it had been forever since she had been spanked, though it had been even longer since she applied herself to her studies.  She had a feeling both would become far more common in her near future.