Chapter 46

Things went pretty well for the family leading up to Christmas. My mother was taking Kate with her wherever she went. She didn't want to take any chances on Christmas being spoiled by something bad happening that involved Kate. There was a lot of shopping for presents that needed to be done.

Ever since that first day when we argued, Kate had been quietly trying to work on me, hoping to get me to change my mind about Clara coming over. My mother waded in on Kate's side by casually mentioning to me that Mrs. Townsend had called her to tell her that Clara was home for the Holidays. She said that Mrs. Townsend was hoping that I'd allow Clara and Kate to get together for at least a few hours, at least once while Clara was visiting. My mother knew that Mrs. Townsend was hoping to use Kate's presence to try to get Clara to decide to come back and live with her. My mother was sympathetic with Mrs. Townsend's hopes. I guess mothers all stick together on stuff like that. I listened to what she was saying, but I didn't say anything in return. Finally, my mother got tired of waiting for me to volunteer that it would be all right with me for Clara to be coming over.

"Laurant, what harm could possibly come from Clara and Katinka meeting here for a few hours? I would be here, keeping both of them in plain view, for the entire time the visit was taking place. You don't have to be here, not if it makes you uncomfortable. It would mean a lot to Katinka."

"I never told you not to let Kate see Clara. I don't happen to think it's such a good idea, but I never said anything about any of that to you."

"Why is it not a good idea?"

"I don't know. It's just a feeling that I have about when those two get together. When they do, each of them wind up doing things that end up being bad for the both of them. Why encourage that?"

"Do we just hold your sister in custody like some kind of dangerous criminal then? Keep her away from everybody else because we fear her getting into more trouble?"

"Do what you want to. Did you talk to papa about this?"

"I don't need to check with your papa about friends visiting Katinka."

"Then you don't need my approval either. Let me know when you have it planned for, and I'll go somewhere else until it is over."

"I was hoping to do it this afternoon, Laurant. From one o'clock until about five. Do you have your Christmas shopping all done?"

I nodded to her, then turned around and headed back to my room. I left the house right after eating my lunch at noon. I wasn't going to take any chances on accidentally running into Clara. Kate was running all around the house, like a chicken with it's head cut off. She was really excited that she was finally going to get to see Clara again.

She didn't exactly gloat at me to show me that she had gotten her way, but she did look my way and smile that little smile of hers several times. Kate knew that she had just won her first big victory since her return. I took comfort in knowing that she hadn't succeeded in getting me to do her bidding. She had been forced to use Mrs. Townsend, just like Mrs. Townsend was using her to try to get what she wanted.

I walked out of the house, and walked over to Bill's house, but he had already left to go spend some time with Brenda at Eileen's apartment. Their relationship was still going on, but now, Brenda wasn't going steady with him. She had already gone out on several car dates, doubling with Eileen. Bill was unhappy, but not unhappy enough to break things off with her completely. Bill's mom was there, and invited me in for a minute.

"I hear that Kate's back home, Larry. I imagine your mother is happy and relieved about that?"

"We all are. Ten months was a long time for her to be gone."

"Yes, I can't imagine having Sissy gone from me for that long. Your mother must be a stronger woman than I am."

"I'm glad Kate's back, but she doesn't seem any different. I was hoping being in Hungary would change her more."

"She might be more changed than she lets on to you. Girls, especially the ones her age, and I guess her age and older really, don't want to be seen as predictable. Watch what she does. It might surprise you how changed she really is."

"I'm still planning on asking Jane out again when she turns fourteen. Are you going to let her go out with me?"

"That depends. What are you planning for her?"

"I guess maybe a movie, and then getting something to eat again. Do you know what her favorite restaurant is?"

"That isn't what I meant, Larry. I meant, what do you plan on doing with her, if I do decide to let you take her out?"

"Do you ask Bill what he plans to do when he takes a girl out?"

"No, I already know what Bill is hoping to do."

"What are you hoping that I'll say to you?"

"I guess I'm hoping that you'll tell me that you know how young you both still are, and that you wouldn't do anything that might harm Sissy's future."

"I know how young we both still are, and I wouldn't do anything that might harm Jane's future."

"Can I trust you when you say that?"

"No." She looked at me and barked out a laugh, then she swept me up in her arms and gave me a big bear hug.

"Oh, Larry! What am I going to do about you? I want so badly to be able to say yes to you, but I just know that if I do, Sissy is going to wind up flat on her back, with you on top of her. She always asks Bill about you, and you wouldn't believe some of the questions she's asked me ever since your last date with her."

"So, the answer is no then?"

"No, you can ask her out. She's just going to have to take her chances, I guess. I'm going to be talking to her though, warning her about all the things you're going to be trying to do. Do you think there's any way that she'll refuse to let you do them?"

"I'd never ask her to do anything unless I already knew she wanted to."

"What about Bill?"

"I don't know. He isn't going to like me going out with her."

"I'll talk to him, let him know that he isn't to interfere with you and Sissy going out. He might still decide to lay you out though, just on general principles."

"I'm faster than he is. He's hit me enough already. If I had to, I could probably whip him, if I had enough room to run around and tire him out. I hope he just leaves me alone though."

"When are you going to ask her?"

"For her birthday. Where do you think she'd like to go to eat?"

"She loves that Chop Suey place that opened over next to the drug store. They don't stay open that late though. You might need to eat first, and then go to the movies. Larry, be sure that she wants to do it, before you get her all excited and just take it from her. If she's anything like her mother, she can't think straight when she gets all hot and bothered. If you aren't sure, make her wait to decide after she gets back to acting like her normal self again."

"How about if I make her tell you she wants me to do it to her, and have her ask you for your permission, before we ever do it?"

"Do you think I'd give her my permission?"

"I think you already have given it, in your own mind."

"For you to ask her out, Larry. I haven't told either of you what you may do after that."

"Do you think you'd let her if she asked you for your permission for us to do it?"

"No, I'm sure I wouldn't. Are you still going to make her ask me?"

"Yes, and if you tell her not to do it, I won't do it."

"I'd never tell her she has my permission."

"I'm counting on that. You can depend on me to keep my word too."

"What do you want from me in return for this? I'm sure you must want something?"

"Keep Bill from getting too upset about me going out with Jane."

"That's it?"

"That's it."

"I have your word then? No screwing without getting my permission first."

"Yes. That doesn't mean we won't be doing other stuff though."

"I agree then. If you end up lying to me, Larry, I'll make you very sorry that you did."

I smiled at her. I knew that I could keep my end of the bargain. I liked Jane. I knew that we could enjoy spending time together. She would have to accept her mother's limits, just like I was prepared to do. Still, even with that, there was a lot that we could do together. I was still worried that Bill was going to be a problem. That day, with our two sisters on the couch in Bill's living room had shown both of us the potential problems that might occur. I was hoping that Bill would be less worried now that Jane was older. Because Bill was doing things himself now, I also thought that might make him less worried about Jane doing some of those things too.

It was after one by the time I left Mrs. Terry's house. I started walking towards the main part of town, not really having any idea about where I wanted to go. I just didn't want to go back home until Clara was gone. I was walking past the dance studio and I looked in the window, noticing my Aunt Agnes giving a lesson to Trudie, and some other girl. I hadn't seen Trudie for a long time, but she still looked the same to me. She didn't look like she had grown any taller, and her body shape seemed the same too. I went inside and sat down in the bleachers on the side that my mom had bought for waiting parents to sit in. Mostly, the people taking classes used it to leave their stuff on while they were taking their class.

I watched Trudie and the other girl, while my aunt had them working on different components. Trudie was working on a spin with her leg fully extended in front of her, about waist high. The other girl was doing deep bends with a movement of her hand from above her head, down to the floor, and finishing with it behind her back. When she bent down, I noticed a small tear in her leotard, right in the back part of her crotch area. Trudie was looking at me, watching where I was staring. When I noticed her grinning at me, I smiled back and waved at her. After fifteen more minutes of repeating the same component, Trudie decided to take a break. She walked over to me.

"Hello Larry, did you come for a lesson, or do you just like to stare at Birdie's pussy?"

"Is that really her name, Birdie?"

"That's what I always call her. I think her real name is Bridget. She reminds me of a bird because she flaps her arms around so much. I sure haven't been seeing much of you, not since you stopped going out with Denise."

"How is Denise? Is she still in Milwaukee, visiting?"

"She's all right. We all went over to see her last weekend. She's so big now. She's due to deliver around the end of February. There's this couple that are going to adopt her baby. It's all arranged, except that now, Denise isn't sure that she wants to give her baby away. My mother is having a canniption fit arguing with her about it. I don't know why she'd even want to keep it. I heard Kate was home now. Is she just visiting, or is it for keeps?"

"It's for keeps if she stays out of trouble. If not, she's just visiting. I heard you were out running really wild. Aren't you afraid of ending up like Denise?"

"No. I've cut way back, ever since my mom found me with this boy over in my dad's workshop. She threatened to put me in a home for bad girls if I ever did it again. I have to be real careful now. What about you, are you still being careful?"

"More than careful, I've quit doing stuff."

"That was going to be my next question, whether you wanted to do it to me again?"

"I would, but I've quit it."

"Well, that's too bad then. You were almost the only one that would be worth it for me to take a chance on getting caught again. Do you ever go out with Karen? I haven't ever been licked like she does it. I wish that she and I were still friends."

"I talk to her sometimes. You want me to tell her that you wish she would invite you over for a sleepover?"

"Tell her to call me. She could come over to my house, and it would be better. Tell her that I'd do her too. I better get back before Aggie blisters my butt. She hits us sometimes, if she doesn't think we're trying hard enough."

"Do you mean she blisters your butt, as in spanks you?"

"Yes. She's done it to me, whacked my butt, three different times so far. Some of the other girls she hits way more than me. She hits hard too."

That surprised me. I knew my mother never hit a student. I wondered why Agnes would discipline them that way. I decided not to mention it to my mom, but I'd ask Agnes about it. Maybe that was normal, at least with the more advanced students. I just couldn't imagine my sweet Aunt Agnes hitting anyone though. After Trudie and the other student left, my aunt came over and sat down next to me. She too was sweating heavily, because she had been working out also, the whole while she supervised her two students.

"Trudie is going to be a wonderful dancer. She picks things up so quickly. I was worried that she would get too big, but she has stopped growing. Already she is my best student."

"Is that why you've only spanked her butt three times?"

"Did she complain of this to you? This is how I was taught, Larry. You need the discipline in order to not keep repeating the same mistakes."

"She says you spank all of the advanced students."

"No, I only spank the ones who have real potential. The others, it simply wouldn't be of any help to them."

"Mama never spanks any students."

"Are you going to speak with her about my methods?"

"Not if you don't want me to. It isn't any of my business how you decide to teach."

"These spankings are good for the students." She paused and looked at me. She continued in a low voice. "They are good for the teacher too."

"You enjoy spanking them?" My aunt's face and neck were all flushed, but a darker red than she had been before, when all of it was just from her workout. She looked embarrassed, but tried to appear like she wasn't. She failed in that.

"It is how I was taught. There is a close relationship between a dancer and her coach. Almost like a parent, or a close relative. The student must know that their progress matters to the teacher. When I was a student, the spanking reassured me, made me know that what I did was important to my teacher. It was a part of our bond."

"So, you liked being spanked?" Agnes was now crimson. She had her head cast down, both of her hands resting on her black leotard. She nodded, but so slightly that I wasn't sure if she was telling me yes, or if her head had just moved on its own. "Was that a yes? You do like it?" Again she nodded, but this time there was no doubt that she was answering me. I didn't know what to say to her. I hated being spanked.

"It wasn't just the spanking. It was being singled out in front of the others, and humiliated for doing wrong."

"But, you said you liked it. You liked being embarrassed in front of the other dancers too?"

"Like isn't the right word, Larry. I never liked it. It was something else. When it happened, and it never happened very often, it excited me. I shouldn't have told you any of this, Larry, you are too young to understand me. I only wanted to explain that it isn't just a spanking, and it is only with some of the students, the ones who can benefit from that type of discipline. Trudie is like me in that way. After a spanking, she is twice as dedicated as before. I think it excites her to be spanked as well."