Cordelia laid it out in detail for her: "You must strip naked and ask to be caned very hard on your bare bottom. The punishment will be inflicted by your fellow intiate - you must beg her for your penalty."
Buffy gave Tara the rattan cane she had taken some trouble to acquire and to cure with linseed oil. It was 8mm thick, with plenty of flexibility - the type once used in schools in England and culturally connected countries like Australia.
Meanwhile Faith had been instructed on what to say. Not at all a natural submissive, she found it hard. "Miss Tara, please bend me over naked... do I really have to say this?"
Cordelia answered "Yes, if you want to join the club. Now start again."
"Miss Tara, please bend me over naked and give me twelve strokes of the cane very hard, on my bare bottom."
Tara said "Of course, Faith, it will be my pleasure. Please take off your clothes then put your hands on your knees". Faith divested herself of her tight costume and after one more look of trepidation at the cane in Tara's hands, she reluctantly assumed the position.
Buffy gave Tara some pointers. "Make sure the tip goes beyond her bottom so you don't gouge with it. Don't give her the next stroke until she's quite still. And remember this is a test for you too, to make sure you won't be too timid whenever you win one of our games. So cane her good and hard."
Faith was all too aware of the risks of being caned by someone so inexperienced. "Bent over this way, my back is pretty safe" she thought. "But my thighs might suffer a couple of stripes". But she determined that she would make no complaint about it. Everyone has to learn sometime. It was just her bad luck to be the guinea pig.
Tara measured her distance nervously. Everyone was aware that psychologically this caning was the wrong way around - Tara was the natural submissive. She decided it would help her if she threw in some roleplay. Instead of shy Tara caning a powerful super-woman, she would be a teacher caning a naughty schoolgirl. "You know what happens if you misbehave in this school, young Miss Faith" she said, and delivered the first stroke.
It was quite hard enough, and accurate, right across the centre of both bare cheeks. Faith gave a very sharp intake of breath, and wriggled her hips slightly. A strong red line appeared on the nude woman's proffered behind and began to swell slightly.
Buffy and Cordelia, enjoying the show immensely, didn't miss the opportunity to tauntingly exploit Faith's predicament:
"The teacher must have caught this girl in the showers. Unless she runs around the school naked."
"What do you think she was doing there?"
"Touching something very naughty, I guess."
"Her own, or someone else's?"
Faith reddened and looked forward to the day she would win a game and they would be the losers. Tara's next stroke came down. The stinging, as Faith now found out, actually increased in the first two or three seconds after the cane struck her bare skin. She gritted her teeth and struggled to hold still.
The third cut of the cane was too low. It crossed the victim's upper thighs as she had feared, and she gave a series of gasps. Tara knew enough not to make the situation awkward by apologizing, but she looked at the others. Willow said "Accidents will happen, and your 'schoolgirl' took it well. Carry on."
Tara carried on caning, and her fellow initiate began groaning aloud and squirming, after each new thin welt was added to her posterior. The eighth stroke was right on top of an existing mark, and yielded an actual scream from tough-minded Faith, and a lot of squirming.
Tara waited for her target to be stationary, and in her teacher's voice said "Stop wriggling, girl, keep your bottom still." This admonition made Faith's face redden further, and strengthened her determination. She took the ninth stripe well, even though it was the second to fall across her thighs.
The tenth stroke was another that caned an existing welt, crossing it slightly. She shot up and yelled "Oh my Gooooood!!!", pressing her hands to her tortured bottom.
"You're lucky we decided not to do penalty strokes in an initiation!" warned Buffy. "Get back down" instructed Tara. Faith was embarrassed by her reaction and said, "It's OK, I'm five by five."
Only one of the last two strokes was a 'lucky' one that found a fresh area of the victim's bottom. The final one was another agonizer, and Faith turned the air blue with her language. "For shame!" said Tara. "But you may stand up straight and report to the school nurse."
Cordelia was closest to the cold cream jar, and thus became 'nurse'. That wasn't the best luck for Faith. Just about anyone else would have been gentler rubbing the lotion onto her welts. "Ow! Oww!" complained the dark Slayer as her battlescars were tended to.
When she was dressed, Willow spoke. "Congratulations on being admitted, both of you, to the 'Sunnydale Social Club'. We look forward to many exciting and painful games with you."
The new members were taken out to the Bronze for some well-earned drinks, though Faith in particular looked very uncomfortable when perched on a bar stool. They now had six contestants, which widened the range and variety of games they could play. In carefully guarded terms (with other people in earshot), they began discussing the possibility of 'team sports'.
End of 'Initiations'. Coming soon: Team Games.
