Coraline is not happy and she makes sure Marcus knows it

"How dare you snap at me again!" Coraline hissed, the anger in her voice sending shivers down the young prince's spine. Her hand darted out and grabbed his ear, twisting it hard and making him squeak in pain. "I was going to wait to punish you until you were more settled here, but I can't stand this awful, spoilt attitude of yours any longer!"

"Coraline, you're hurting me!" The young prince squealed as she dragged him by the ear to a chair waiting in the corner. She utterly ignored him, sitting herself down and then grabbing his waist with her other hand. Marcus couldn't even fight as she pulled him over her lap. At last she let go of his ear, but only to pin him to her knees with that hand. In a panic now, the young prince tried to wriggle away, but she was just so strong!

"I've been so patient with you, and this is how you repay me!" She snapped above him, wrenching his arms into the small of his back and holding them there with one hand. "I told you already that I'm looking after you, so what I say goes! You're going to learn that lesson, if I have to spank it into you the hard way!" Marcus froze on her lap in utter shock. Did she just say...?

As if in answer to that question, her hand slammed into his dress-covered butt with a muffled crack. A shrill yelp escaped his lips, the burning pain bringing tears to his eyes. There was no way! She couldn't do this to him! He was a prince!

"Stop it, Coraline! You can't..." He managed to gasp before she smacked him once more and his voice died in another frantic squeal. He bucked up, fighting with all his panicked strength, but her hand just **** him back down into her lap. Then the other cracked across his butt again, leaving another stinging mark on his tender skin.

"I can and I will, Marcie!" She snapped viciously, punctuating each word with a hard smack. His butt was really burning now, but no matter how much he squealed and bucked, she just didn't stop hitting him! "You will do as I say! And if this is the only way to teach you that, then so be it!" Sobbing helplessly, Marcus kicked his legs up over his stinging butt. "Stop fighting me, you little brat!" Coraline spat. "This is exactly what you deserve!"

She **** his feet back down with her hand, then pinned his legs between her thighs, holding them there while she went back to slapping him again and again. The thin silk of his dress and gown felt like no protection at all, every hard smack cracking across his tender flesh like he was naked. Marcus was howling now, the pain too much to bear. Tears streamed down his cheeks, and he was ready to do anything to make her stop hitting him, but every time he tried to tell her that another smack would land and leave him babbling and sobbing like a child.

It just went on and on, until at last the young prince was slumped over his maid's lap, too broken and tired to do much more than twitch and sniffle when the last few smacks cracked across his burning butt. The stinging pain had turned into a deep burning ache sinking into his flesh. He had almost no experience with pain like this but Marcus could guess he was going to be feeling these bruises for a long time.

At last, Coraline paused, her hand resting over his scorched rear after one last hard smack. He was tense and sobbing, expecting more, but instead his maid started rubbing her palm gently over his butt. The silk of his dress and gown brushed over the burning welts, making them hurt even worse at first, but then slowly the pain began to ease slightly where she rubbed him. Marcus was still sobbing hopelessly, unable to trust his voice to speak, and he knew he'd do almost anything to stop her from hitting him like that again.

"I'm sorry I had to do that to you." Coraline sighed above him. "I don't want to hurt you, but you're not giving me much choice. Come on, let's get you sat up so I can talk to you." Her hand slipped away from his butt and grabbed him by the waist. The young prince was lifted up, his maid handling his little, trembling body with ease. She turned him round and sat his scorched butt down in her lap. Even that slight pressure sent waves of fresh pain shooting into his flesh. His lip trembled and he wept, hot, tears dribbling down onto the hem of his dress. "I hate to see you like this, dear. I hate to see you cry." Coraline continued, reaching up to cup his tear-stained cheek. **** for comfort, Marcus found himself pressing into her palm, even though she was the one who'd done this to him. "But you can't keep questioning me and acting like a spoilt brat. I gave you that dress for a very good reason. Those soldiers will still be looking for you, and they'll be searching the town soon enough. If one of them comes in here, we need him to think you're my daughter, just like Castus did. That's why I had to make sure you were dressed in such pretty clothes, okay? You already look very much like a girl and this way no-one will ever guess you're the prince. You'll be safe then, safe with me, just like it should be. Do you understand that, Marcus?"

Her arm had wrapped around him as she spoke, hugging him closer into her pillowy chest. The young prince lay against her, so sore and broken he just wanted to be hugged, even if it was by the woman who'd hurt him so badly. Somehow what she was telling him made sense too. No-one would guess he was a boy dressed like this. Why couldn't she have told him that first, though? Why did she leap straight to spanking him so hard?

"Yes." He sniffled as her fingers gently wiped the tears from his cheeks. "I understand."

"And are you going to be good from now on and do as I say?" Coraline continued, a harder edge slipping into her voice that made him tremble. "Because I'll spank you again, as many times as I have to."

"I'll be good." Marcus whimpered, and he meant it, with all his heart. If it stopped her from hitting him again on his burning butt, he'd do anything at all.

"You had better be." She sighed. "Now get up, naughty child, and go stand in the corner for a little while, facing the wall. I want you to think about what you've done and how much you've upset me. You can come out when I tell you and I expect you to be good and obedient for me then."

She pushed him gently on the back and Marcus slipped from her lap, landing on trembling legs that hardly seemed able to support his weight. His maid pointed at the corner of the room, her eyebrow raised. Too afraid of her to even think of disobeying, the young prince shuffled over there, still crying and whimpering. He lent forward against the wall, his nose buried in the corner. She'd told him to think about all sorts of things but all he could focus on was how sore his butt was. Every beat of his heart it throbbed and ached even hotter, like there were glowing coals pressed against his tender flesh. At least the silk of his pretty gown was soft and comfortable even with how much pain he was in. He couldn't imagine how much worse it would feel if he was wearing his usual trousers or shorts.