The Towel Girl’s Punishment

The Towel Girl’s Punishment

by Lubrican

Author’s Comment: This story is dedicated to Gene, who thinks I can’t write a piece of trash. Here’s the proof I can.

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Bob

Loni was in trouble and she knew it. Her rebellious nature had finally gotten her in real trouble. She’d taken a necklace out of old Wauna’s hut while Wauna was out gathering fruit and she’d gotten caught with it. Now she was being called in front of the village wise men for punishment. Loni stared at the entrance of the cave where the wise men sat each day to settle disputes, answer questions, tell people when to plant and all of the other things the wise men decided for her people. She’d never been in that dark place, and had never wanted to.

She had to duck when she went in. Loni was tall for one of her people. She was also slim. She could run faster than any of the boys, though when she did that now her breasts sometimes hurt. They had grown a lot in the last year or two and stuck out from her slim chest in what she thought was an ugly and misshapen way. The soft cotton tunic she wore shifted and slid over her long brown nipples as she ducked. That was another thing she didn’t understand. Those nipples caused her more trouble than anything else about her body. They were always in her consciousness because they always felt so … so … good. She’d been seized by the urge to rub and squeeze them a lot lately, and when she did it caused the most lovely sensations to run through her body. It also made her feel … well … good between her legs.

Loni knew about where babies came from. She’d seen several childbirths. But she couldn’t believe some of the stories she heard. Like that one her friend Manu had told her about a man sticking his penis in the hole a baby came out of. Of course a baby was lots bigger than a penis, so she knew it would fit, but those women in childbirth didn’t act like they were having a fun time, and Manu swore that when a man stuck his penis in that hole it felt really nice. Loni had asked Manu how she knew and that had bothered Manu for some reason. She stammered and finally said her brother had told her about it. Loni had thought about that a lot. She knew that some girls got a baby inside them before they were married, but they were only the bad girls, who were being punished by the wise men. It was a puzzle to the girl.

But all those thoughts were far from Loni’s head now, other than the twinge of pleasure she felt in her nipples when she ducked and entered the wise men’s cave. Right now she was frightened. Who knew what those old men would do about her theft?

It was too dark to see who the individual men were. There was a smoky fire burning in the fire pit, but it was mostly coals. Every once in a while a disembodied hand appeared over the coals and dropped some herbs into the fire. Sweet and somehow scary smells came from those herbs, and they made Loni’s head spin. She had wanted her mother to come with her to the council, but she’d refused. She’d said something Loni didn’t understand: “You’re a big girl now Loni. You’ve seen fourteen summers, and you knew that what you were doing was wrong. Now you must pay the consequences.”

Loni stood there in the dark for a long time before a gruff voice came out of the dark. It told her to stand by the fire, and when she did, it said to remove her tunic. She thought that was odd, but the fumes from the fire made her pliable and she lifted the garment over her head. There were murmured voices and the voice came back. “You stole from one of our people. For stealing, you will be assigned to the baths for six moons.” The voice fell silent.

Loni shook her head.

Something was wrong here! She couldn’t be assigned to the bath house.

Only the girls who got pregnant before they were married were punished by being sent there. She knew this because all the girls who worked in the bathhouse were pregnant. She saw them every time she took a bath herself. They were required to help all the bathers, and dry them with the big soft towels that could only be found in that place. Her rebellious nature surged to the surface of her fogged mind. “But I’m not with child! I can’t be sent to the sauna! Only the bad girls are sent there!”

It was silent for a few seconds and a different deep voice came out of the darkness. “Loni you ARE a bad girl. Stealing is bad and you have stolen. This is your punishment. Now leave, and report to the Baths.”

Loni stumbled out of the cave and looked around with bleary eyes. She realized she was still holding her tunic and she put it back on. She thought briefly – very briefly – about running away. But life outside the village was very hard and very dangerous. Besides, it was only six months.

Loni stood before Valuna, the mistress of the baths.