Chapter 4: The First Afternoon

By the time Lisa and Kathleen were finished in the shower, the medical examiners were wrapping up their evaluations of Cherine and Bernadette. Both young women were in good heath, although the lead member of the examination team noted that Bernadette probably should have her vision checked because she had missed some letters while reading the bottom line of an eye chart. Both young women were sweaty from running on the treadmill and a bit disconcerted by the gynecological examination. However, they both obediently allowed themselves to be taken to the shower, cuffed, and washed off. Later in the evening Lisa was a bit surprised to learn that, like herself, Bernadette had been given an orgasm by the shower attendants. Cherine was still a long way off from being able to surrender herself to such pleasure, but Lisa hoped that soon she would be heading in that direction.

Lisa and Kathleen waited on their knees while Cherine and Bernadette finished up in the shower and toweled off. Once reunited the four women went to the back patio of the Tri-Alpha house where a late lunch of fruit salads and tossed salads was waiting for them. To drink they had the choice of mineral water with ice or orange juice. Lisa was amazed at the effort that went into preparing their meal: the juice was freshly squeezed and the fruit salads boasted 12 different types of fruit. By the time they sat down the four women were famished and gratefully dug into their meals.

After eating lunch inside with the Tri-Alphas Tracy and Heather returned to the patio loudly snapping their fingers. That was the pledges’ cue that they needed to stand up from the table and line up for the next task of the day, their ID photos.

“Pledge Bernadette!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

“You’re in charge of clean-up! Stack up the dishes and take them to the kitchen! Make sure the table’s clean and the chairs are put back! Once you’re done get your ass to the sitting room! You got five minutes!

“Yes, ma’am!”

While Bernadette rushed to clear the dishes from the table, Heather and Tracy led the other pledges back to the sitting room. While they were absent the medical items had been taken out and put away, to be replaced with photographic equipment, lighting, and a simple white backdrop. Large blue letters stenciled on the canvas conveyed a rather ominous message:

Property of the Four-Beta Sorority

Lisa had another rude shock awaiting her. It turned out the photographer was someone she knew, an art major called Suzanne Foster. Suzanne was not exactly a friend. She still was more of an acquaintance, but both were mutual friends of Cecilia Sanchez and Lisa’s boyfriend Ken. Lisa had previously posed for Suzanne and had talked with her at various events they had attended together the previous spring, so the two women did know each other fairly well. For some reason Lisa was mortified at the thought of letting Suzanne see her like this, not as a possible friend, but as nothing more than a naked and submissive pledge.

Suzanne glanced at the four kneeling women, the four subjects of her current assignment. It was obvious that she recognized Lisa as part of the pledge group, but did not acknowledge that Lisa was anything more to her other than a photographic subject.

Bernadette came in from the kitchen and quickly took her place beside her three companions. A minute or so later, Tracy, acting very much like a drill sergeant, stood at attention in front of the pledges.

“Pledges! Stand up!”

The pledges scrambled to their feet, but clumsily and with no coordination.

“Absolutely pathetic! Let’s try it again! Kneel!”

The pledges sank back to their knees.

“Pledges! Stand up!”

Again the four women rose to their feet. They were more mindful of rising together, but still their performance did not satisfy Tracy.

“Let’s try it again! Kneel!”

The pledges sank back to their knees a third time.

“Pledges! Stand up!”

The pledges rose and returned to their knees three more times. The seventh time the pledges were standing at attention Tracy got in Lisa’s face.

“Pledge Lisa, are you trying to piss me off?”

“No ma’am!”

“Then what’s with this shit performance of yours? What’s wrong with you, can’t you follow a simple order?”

“We’re trying, ma’am!”

“‘We’, Pledge Lisa? What’s with this ‘we’ bullshit? Maybe it’s not ‘we’, maybe the problem is YOU!” Again Tracy poked her finger into Lisa’s chest.

Lisa resisted the urge to slam her fist into Tracy’s mouth, because she fully understood what was going on. Tracy did not bear any particular ill will against her, but wanted to test her by putting her into an impossible situation. Her mentor must have somehow learned that she knew the photographer and was deliberately hazing her in front of Suzanne to embarrass her and see how she would react.

“If the problem is me, ma’am, then go after me! Take it out on me and quit messing with the other pledges!”

“Oh how sweet! We have a little martyr don’t we?”

Again Lisa felt the sharp poke of Tracy’s fingernail in her chest. She tensed up at being poked for the third time and clenched her fists. She wanted so badly to nail that bitch right in the face. She thought about the chances of her winning a fight with Tracy. She calculated that she and the other woman were evenly matched, but that she would have the advantage of landing the first punch...

No. No. Don’t screw this up, Lisa. Think about the others. Think about the others...

Lisa began breathing with tension. Tracy picked up on that and pressed her advantage.

“It doesn’t work like that, Pledge! If you fuck up, Pledge, all of you fuck up, and they’re paying for YOUR fuck-up! They’re paying for it, and it’s all YOUR fault! All of you ... front leaning rest position, NOW!”

The four pledges dropped to their hands and toes as Tracy’s voice snarled:

“In cadence, exercise! ONE ... TWO ... THREE...”

“ONE!”

“ONE ... TWO ... THREE...”

“TWO!”

“ONE ... TWO ... THREE...”

“THREE!”

“ONE ... TWO ... THREE...”

At the count of twenty, the four pledges were gasping for breath. The soreness from Lisa’s first set of pushups returned in force, while Cherine and Bernadette struggled from not being used to exercising. The only member of the group who managed to hold up was Kathleen. The four sweaty, trembling pledges made a sorry sight as they struggled to stay in position.

Tracy ordered the pledges to recover. She walked up to Cherine and yelled in her face.

“Pledge Cherine, doesn’t it piss you off that Pledge Lisa fucked up and got you in trouble?”

“No ma’am!”

“What? It doesn’t piss you off that Pledge Lisa was the one who fucked up your afternoon?”

“Ma’am! Pledge Lisa didn’t fuck up!”

“Well, isn’t that special, Pledge Cherine! So now you’re calling me a liar! How dare you...”

“You’re not telling the truth ma’am! Pledge Lisa didn’t fuck up! Liar is your word, not mine, ma’am!”

Tracy was taken aback by Cherine’s comment, but at the same time very pleased. It turned out this group had some real backbone, which was made clear by the pledges’ willingness to stand up to her and stick up for each other. This was going to be a good group...

Heather realized that she needed to come to Tracy’s aid by changing the subject.

“Alright you four! Picture time! Let’s go!”

Suzanne had two cameras set up; one to take facial shots and the other to take full-body shots. It was strange to think that at the same time the day before the only person willing to pose naked would have been Lisa. However, the other three women now were becoming more used to being naked, after having spent the last five hours with nothing on and having had their bodies seen and touched by both men and other women. There was no hint of modesty as each of them posed for the sorority’s ID portraits.

Each pledge had to pose for a total of 30 pictures. The session began with eight standing shots, starting with the subject facing the camera and then turning 45 degrees for each succeeding shot in the series. There were additional shots of each pledge kneeling, sitting, standing with her legs spread and hands behind her head, and finally facial portraits taken from different angles. Suzanne was using high-quality film and carefully took each picture so the resolution would be perfectly clear. There was no question that anyone looking at the pictures would have a very thorough idea of what each of the four women looked like at that point in their lives.