Chapter 43: Kathleen’s Punishment

Once the celebrations from the victory died down and the Four-Beta members returned to the sorority house, President Alexandra called an emergency meeting in the sitting room. She flatly announced the fall election was way overdue and that it was urgent to have the sorority’s new leadership elected and in place for Rush Week.

“Unfortunately we’ll have to make the transition at the same time we’re having Rush, but I’ve got to step down. I’m not taking classes this fall, and if I’m no longer enrolled I’m not qualified to be in the directorate. So tomorrow night we’re holding our fall elections, and we’ll swear in the new officers on Saturday. Please consult with your class leaders so we can agree on nominations.”

Lisa felt bad for Alexandra, because her presidency was ending without the scandal over the former Sergeant-at-Arms being completely resolved. While it may have been true that President Alexandra was not the best leader the sorority ever had, it also was clear that she was a decent person and that she did care about what happened to the members. Lisa knew that in the end she would be forgotten, that her mixed record and a few lapses of judgment would relegate her service to obscurity within a few years. Once the sophomores graduated, no one in the sorority would even remember her.

Tracy would be very different as president. She had a very aggressive plan that if implemented, would make the Four-Beta Sorority a very serious organization and expand its membership. She wanted being a Four-Beta to be a life-changing experience for everyone who joined and ultimately expand the sorority’s influence within the university community. Unlike her predecessor, Tracy would be remembered long after she graduated and moved on with her career. The changes she planned to make would have a permanent impact on how the Four-Betas conducted their lives and saw themselves as a group.

Lisa was hoping to go to bed and spend some time with Kathleen but, as usual, Tracy pulled her aside and asked her to accompany her into the sorority office. Tracy wanted to “talk shop” with Lisa before releasing her for the evening. Her immediate concern was not the election, but Rush Week. The sorority would be full of prospective pledges throughout the next six days and the members would have to host a series of parties. The sophomores had the biggest stake in the outcome of Rush Week, because they would be living with the incoming group for the next three years.

“You’re gonna have to get together with Elaine and do some real mixing with those freshmen. This is really gonna be your show. Also, make sure the members of your pledge group and Brittany and Erin are out there, getting to know those girls. And another thing. We’re definitely not the right sorority for everyone. If you don’t think we’re a good fit for someone or they’re not a good fit for us, make sure they know that and make sure you explain why. But at the same time, never be overly insistent about pushing someone out the door. If you don’t think they’re a good fit, and you try to discourage them, but they seem to insist, send them my way so I can make a final determination. Don’t forget, I have no problem taking in the Bernadettes and Kathleens of this world. If they really want to join, and I feel it’s for the right reasons, I’ll give ‘em a contract.”

Tracy sat back and tilted her head slightly, which was a gesture she always used when she had something important to announce to her listener:

“That gets us to the next thing I need to settle. I’ve been talking to the other seniors, and also to Shannon and Elaine, and we’ve pretty much decided who’s gonna get the nominations for the next chapter directorate. The new officers will all be seniors, except Shannon, who’s my first choice for the next Sergeant-at-Arms. There’s only one spot still open, and that’s Pledge Mistress. There’s a reason why Pledge Mistress is always the hardest position to fill, and that’s because most members don’t want it. It’s the least glamorous spot in the directorate, and yet by far the one with the most responsibility and the one with the most work. Most of the members are here to have fun, and being Pledge Mistress is not very much fun. However, this year we do have a member who’d make a good Pledge Mistress.”

“So who is it?”

“You.”

“Me?”

“You’re the most logical choice. What I’d like to do is nominate you to be this year’s Pledge Mistress and take the word ‘Acting’ off your title.”

“But ... I just joined ... wouldn’t the others have a problem with...”

Tracy smiled and shook her head.

“No. Trust me, the others won’t have a problem with it. With as much work as that position is ... and the worst part of it is having to put up with me day in and day out ... No. They’re not lining up to be Pledge Mistress. That job takes a certain personality type, and right now, you’re the member in the sorority who’s got what’s needed to do the job. It doesn’t matter that you just joined.”

“Well ... I guess if the others are OK with it ... I’d be honored...”

“And I’ll be honored to be working with you in the fall. Even before I started talking to the seniors, you were my first pick to replace me. The others are expecting it. They already have a nickname for you. They’re calling you ‘Tracy Junior’.”

Lisa laughed.

“I ‘spose there’s worse things they could call me.”

“Anyhow, I know you’ve got Kathleen as your assistant. Actually, she’s very good with the stuff you’ve assigned to her, you know, the rules and history instruction. I suppose she’s not ready to take over a group?”

“No. Her strong point is her teaching. She’s not a leader. I couldn’t picture her bossing anyone around.”

“Alright, then we’ll keep her focused on instructing and not assign her a group. How do you feel about Bernadette and Cherine?”

“I think Bernadette would make a good counselor, but you’re gonna have to be careful about who goes in her group. You’d want outgoing girls with her, but not ones with really strong personalities. I wouldn’t put anyone in her group who might challenge her, because I don’t think she’d handle that well. Cherine would be a good counselor with quieter pledges, the shy ones.”

“Alright, then we’ve got a Pledge Mistress, an assistant/instructor, and two group counselors. I’ll talk to Shannon and Elaine about nominating the others. Now the next thing I want to think about is what the training staff is gonna wear. I’m thinking of assigning uniforms to the training staff, the same as the pledge outfits, except the shirts would read ‘counselor’ or ‘Pledge Mistress’.”

Lisa took a deep breath. Tracy noticed her disappointed expression.

“You’re not thrilled about having to wear a uniform, are you?”

“Not really. I mean, I already told Brittany and Erin that I wasn’t gonna be wearing anything because I’m a nudist and...”

“So, that lifestyle’s really that important to you?”

“Yes.”

“So, what you’re telling me is that you’d prefer to perform your duties as Pledge Mistress in the nude?”

“Yes.”

“Well, here’s a thought. What if I propose that the uniform for the Pledge Mistress ought to be the same as the pledges? In other words, when the pledges are naked, the Pledge Mistress must be naked too?”

“That’s sort of what I wanted...”

“Alright, I’ll just write that into your work plan. But what it means is that whenever the pledges are attending sorority functions or meetings, you’d have to be there in the nude along with them.”

“That’s fine. That’s what I want.”

Lisa watched as Tracy made some notes. Then she decided to change the topic:

“Tracy, I was kinda curious. If you want me to be Pledge Mistress, what’s the deal gonna be about discipline?”

“That’ll mostly stay the same under you as it was under me. I believe that physical punishment is an important part of what we do in the Four-Beta pledge-training program. As Pledge Mistress I expect you to be as strict with your group as I was with you. The only change I want is more accountability. Anytime a pledge needs to be disciplined, the Pledge Mistress, or in some cases her group counselor, will administer the punishment. Both the Pledge Mistress and the counselor would have to be present whenever a punishment is administered, along with another chapter officer and at least one other witness, preferably other pledges from her group. I also want to formalize punishments, such as having an official reading of the pledge’s offense, always conducting punishments in one place, and always have them administered the same way.”

Tracy looked at Lisa to get her reaction. When Lisa nodded Tracy continued:

“What I’d also like to do is put down in writing the rules, procedures, and severity of punishments, so everyone knows, from the very beginning, what to expect. On the other hand, I’d leave some discretion for leniency to the Pledge Mistress, but would make sure that she explains in the training log why any given punishment is less severe than what’s stipulated in the Pledge Manual. For example, your decision to split the punishment you had to give Brittany and Erin because your assistant brought out the wrong strap made perfect sense. I want to make sure the Pledge Mistress has that type of on-the-spot discretion. But anyhow, I want everything related to punishments put into the training log, so that each incident of discipline is documented and subject to review by the sorority officers at the end of each week.”

“That makes sense.”

“By the way, make sure the punishment you administered to Brittany and Erin is fully documented in the training log. Might as well get started on that now.”

“Alright.”

Lisa added a paragraph about the strapping to the training log while Tracy looked through several pledge packets. When Lisa finished her entry, Tracy’s next question totally shocked her.

“Lisa, I need to ask you a personal question, because how you answer will make a difference in a decision I have to make for myself.”

Lisa looked up, waiting for the question:

“What’s your relationship with Ken right now?”

“I ... well you know I was over at the Tri-Alpha house today...”

“Having sex with him?”

Lisa gave Tracy a very irritated look.

“Yes, Tracy, I had sex with him. Why do you need to know that?”

Tracy took a deep breath.

“I need to know that because ... I have my reasons. But if you’re getting back together with Ken, where does that leave Kathleen?”

“It’s kinda complicated ... but I’m not leaving her, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“But you still want him as well?”

“Yeah, the truth is, I want him too. But there’s a lot more to it ... right now I can’t explain it, but what I feel for both of them...”

The two women sat quietly for a minute, each of them becoming more uncomfortable with the silence.

“You will remember that I told you not to judge Ken, not to make assumptions about him. You remember that, right?”

“Yes. I remember that.”

“ ... and now you’ve decided that you want him back, even though you’re rooming with Kathleen?”

“Yes.”

“ ... and he wants you?”

“Yes.”

“ ... and ... do Ken and Kathleen ... know about each other?”

Lisa stayed silent for a minute, but suddenly blurted out:

“Yeah, they know about each other alright! They even fucked each other at Burnside’s party and tried to keep it a secret from me! That pissed me off and...”

Tracy immediately pounced on Lisa’s hypocrisy over the encounter between her two lovers. As Lisa defended herself, she was forced to explain that what she really wanted was to have both Ken and Kathleen as submissive partners. Then she backtracked and tried to justify what she wanted:

“ ... but it’s not what you think ... really it isn’t! I care about both of them and the fact is they both need me. The problem is I really don’t know how much longer I can balance them in my life, because ... in the end you’ll be right about ... because I’m really worried I’m gonna badly hurt one of them ... and that’s the last thing I want to do...”

“Well, here’s my next question. How would you feel if Ken was staying here, with us in the sorority house, and you were in charge of him?”

“Well, sure ... that’d be great, but how could that happen?”

“Remember in a few days I’ll be chapter president?”

“Well, yeah...”

“And you’ll remember there’s a tradition that, every year, the Four-Beta chapter president gets to pick two Tri-Alphas as her personal attendants. Those two members are officially on loan to us from the fraternity. They have to stay at the sorority instead of the fraternity, and they’re under orders from the Four-Beta directorate. What I’m driving at is that with your permission I’d like to pick Ken to be one of my attendants.”

“But ... are you and him...”

“No. We’re not. That’s the reason I want him on board, because I don’t want an attendant I’m emotionally involved with. The truth is, I have nothing to offer him. I can’t give him a relationship, or my time, or my love. Ken understands what I need from him, but I have absolutely nothing I can give back to him in return. That would have to come from you. Love, time, emotional support, training, discipline ... all that would have to come from you.”

Lisa realized that she was about to get as close to living out her fantasy as she could without owning a large house in which she could lock up her two lovers. Also, she was somewhat flattered that Tracy was asking her permission to take Ken as one of her attendants, because that was something she was not required to do at all.