Punishment Uniforms

Ten minutes later, the three officers of the Kay Zeta sorority entered the “casting” room where Tara, Bit, Alice and I waited nervously.

Millicent looked at us. Then she said simply, “All right, your punishment’s been decided.” Without further preamble, she took Torrance’s and Gabrielle’s hands, then closed her eyes and began chanting softly to herself. A moment later, Torrance and Gabrielle- the other officers of the Kay Zetas- began chanting softly as well.

The room seemed to darken somewhat and Tara, Bit, Alice and I looked at each other nervously. Although she was young, Millicent was still the highest ranking witch in a sorority of witches. She wasn’t someone to piss off, and we had done just that. And Torrance and Gabrielle weren’t small fry either.

Millicent opened her eyes and we realized her pupils had enlarged. In fact, her eyes were completely black...there was no white to be seen. Then she spoke, and her voice was deeper and resonating with a choir-of-several effect.

“You have all been found guilty,” said Millicent, “and you shall assume punishment uniforms for the duration of your penance.”

Millicent waved her hand in our direction and barely visible swirls formed around each of us. The swirls whirled around us faster and faster and I suddenly realized my clothing was coming apart. Then I realized it wasn’t coming apart; rather, the material of my top and skirt was unraveling and re-stitching itself at an incredible rate.

After a few seconds, the swirls faded until they remained whirling around only my wrists and ankles. Then the swirls finally disappeared altogether.

“Alice and Bit,” said Millicent, still speaking in the deep, choir-of-many resonance, “You have broken the rules of the Kay Zetas and now you shall receive our punishment.” She gestured at Alice and Bit.

“Ohhhh...!” said Alice, gasping. Bit made a similar sound.

“Tara and Nicole,” continued Millicent, “you also have broken the rules of the Kay Zetas and now you shall receive our punishment.”

Millicent gestured and a sudden rush rippled through my entire body, head to toe. It felt like it hit every cell inside me.

“Geez,” said Tara.

Then the light in the room returned to normal.

Millicent’s forehead was dotted with perspiration, but she appeared otherwise unaffected by her spell-casting efforts. She offered us a smile.

“All done,” she said. “You’ll notice the effects almost immediately.”

“I noticed them already,” said Tara, crossing her arms over her chest. “Where’s the rest of my outfit?”

That’s when I realized my “punishment uniforms” consisted of a flippy mini-skirt...and almost nothing else. I did, however, have manacles on my wrists and ankles and what felt like a collar on my throat.

A quick glance at the others showed that Tara had the exact same outfit...the flippy skirt and the manacles and collar. Alice and Bit had the same outfit as well, but theirs included bikini tops.

I looked to Millicent. “Why do they get tops and we don’t?”

“Because you and Tara are the primary offenders,” said Millicent. “They were only peripherally involved. Their punishment is lighter than yours.”

“What about our clothes?”

“You’ll get them back at midnight,” said Millicent. “The spell will dissipate at that time and your serving clothes will reappear.”

I sighed. Barefoot and topless until midnight. Still, it could have been worse. I’d just have to keep my arms crossed until the party was over.

Tara apparently thought the same thing. “So, we’re done here?” she said. “We can go?”

“You can, if you want,” said Millicent. “Alice and Bit must stay for another minute or so. Their punishment will manifest itself shortly.”

Tara and I looked at each other and then obviously arrived at the same decision to stay. There was no way we were wandering out there until we knew what kind of punishment we were facing. Besides, I wasn’t relishing the idea of walking around a party topless.

Then Alice made a squeak.

“Are you okay?” I asked.