Proportionate Response

Violet watched Riley lead Paige away from the plaza. The poor thing looked all shaken up about the extra transformation. Violet figured she'd be fine though. Her transformations had all been pretty easy to cope with. So her ass was a little bigger. There were girls out there who would pay surgeons a lot of money for a chance like hers.

Violet turned her attention to Trevor. He was still on his throne, deep in thought. He certainly could introspect, that one. She let herself feel a little bit of pride at how well he was coming along.

There wasn't much point to sticking around. She had some business to attend to down by the oasis. Leaving Trevor to brood, she made her way across the plaza. As she reached the stairs however Aaliyah hustled over. Violet gave her an appraising gaze.

"Can I help you?" Violet asked.

Aaliyah came in closer, lowering her voice. "Yes. I was wondering, when is Hanna going to be moving back in? I haven't heard from you in several days."

Ah. This conversation then. "I'm afraid she isn't going to be moving back in with you after all."

Aaliyah frowned. "That isn't what you said before. You told me it was against the rules for her to spend too much time away."

"Yes, well, the situation is fluid."

"What does that mean?" Aaliyah demanded.

"Watch your tone with me. I'm more than happy to talk with you about these things but lets keep it civil, shall we? In any event, circumstances have changed. Hanna will be free to spend as long as she likes with Natalie and Laura."

"You lied to me," Aaliyah accused, her eyes burning. "You said you'd get my daughter back."

"I didn't lie. I meant every word I said when I said it. I was going to have Hanna move back in with you because I thought it was best for the show. It turns out that I was mistaken."

Aaliyah spoke with a severe tone and expression. "You cannot keep my daughter from me."

"I'm not trying to. Hanna is free to move back in with you whenever she feels like it. Personally, I'd even welcome it."

Aaliyah grit her teeth. "I am not an idiot. I know what you are doing and what you plan for my daughter. If I hadn't been there to stop her then you would have already gotten what your. So now you are splitting us up."

Violet took a deep breath. She really didn't have the patience for this. "Moving out was Hanna's choice. I had nothing to do with it."

"But you'll take advantage of it to keep her away from me. You want her alone and unprotected. I will not let you prey on her."

"If you want her to come back, you probably need to reconcile with her somehow."

"Don't you dare tell me how to mother her."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

Aaliyah seethed. "Do not condescend to me."

Violet had had enough. "You want me to level with you? Fine. The biggest threat to Hanna is you. You are deeply unpopular with the audience, and your strategic choices on the show have so far been highly questionable. You're leading her into oblivion. You need to shape up, because you're dragging her down."

Aaliyah's eyes were wide with anger. She was practically shaking. "I will not be spoken to like this. Give me my daughter back."

"Be a better mother."

As soon as the words left her mouth Violet knew she had made a mistake.

Aaliyah snapped. She lunged at violet with a wordless shriek. Violet tried to step away but couldn't react fast enough. Aaliyah grabbed her dress in one fist and used the other to send a vicious right hook straight into Violet's jaw.

Violet crumpled to the ground. Thinking quickly, she held her hand up and snapped her fingers. Aaliyah froze, stuck mid-lunge, with her face locked in a rictus snarl.

Violet picked herself up off the marble floor. Shit. Shit. She should have known better than to provoke Aaliyah. One slip of the tongue was all it had taken. Just one drop in Violet's composure to set her off. She approached the frozen woman, wondering how she was going to clean up this mess.

"Get away from her Violet!" Trevor shouted.

She looked over her shoulder. Trevor was racing over. Great. This was just what she needed. The boy pulled up short, positioning himself somewhat between her and Aaliyah.

"Let her go," he insisted, his voice sure.

Violet smoothed out her dress. "I understand your concern, Trevor. I do. But she hit me. That is not a small transgression."

"Oh, and I'm sure it was completely unprovoked. She just walked over and hit you for no reason?"

Aaliyah's eyes, the only thing she could move, darted back and forth between the pair. Violet looked around. Most of the others had left by now. Chloe stood watching, as did Natalie, but thankfully Hanna was nowhere to be seen.

"It doesn't matter," Violet insisted, turning back to Trevor. "Physical **** of the host is a hard line. This can't go unpunished."

"What's her punishment then?" he asked, sneering.

"By all rights," Violet declared, "elimination."

Trevor's face grew icy. "No."

"This isn't up to you Trevor."

"No," he said. "It's up to you. And I'm telling you not to eliminate her. This is as much your fault as hers."

"There is no excuse for **** on this show. Not of anyone, but especially not of the host."

"Find another way to handle it then."

He held her gaze with steely resolve. She was between a rock and a hard place. It would not go well for her if she eliminated a contestant because of her own mistake. Even if Aaliyah should have been able to control herself, Violet had provoked her. The audience, and her boss, would see this as her fault. At the same time though she hadn't lied to Trevor. She had to draw a very clear line in the sand. **** would not be tolerated.

Her mind spun, a plan beginning to form. She leveled Trevor with a serious look.

"If I keep her on the show," she told him, "then you owe me."

He stared her down, but she thought she could see some uncertainty creep into his stance. He still imagined that eventually he'd be able to pull one over on her. Being in her debt would not be to his liking.

"Fine," he conceded.

Getting a favor from him was a decent silver lining. She didn't have a way to use it in mind just yet, but she was sure she could think of something.

The real question was what to do with Aaliyah. A sexy 'punishment' might play well with the audience, but this wasn't about them. Violet had to send a clear message that this wasn't the kind of thing she would tolerate. The punishment needed to be severe.

Making her mind up, Violet nodded. "Alright, step back," she said.

Trevor hesitantly did as she asked, although he continued to hang around Aaliyah protectively. Violet clapped her hands together and fell to one knee, placing her palms on the ground. As she rose marble emerged from the floor to rise with her, taking shape as she willed it to. When she was done Violet took a step back to reveal her work.

"What is that?" Trevor asked.

"A pillory," she told him. "Aaliyah will stay in it for the rest of the round."

He eyed her suspiciously. "I don't understand."

"She'll have no good way to support herself," Violet explained. "It will hold her too high up to kneel and too far down to stand. As her muscles grow tired she'll be **** to assume more and more uncomfortable positions. It will not be a pleasant experience."

"This is ****," Trevor hissed. "Think of something better."

Violet turned on him. "This is something better. She is going to be punished. There is no way around that. It's this or elimination."

Trevor held her gaze for a long time but she did not falter. Eventually he was **** to accept the compromise. "Fine."

Violet nodded. All things considered, this could certainly have gone worse.

She made a motion with her hand and a ballgag appeared in Aaliyah's mouth, then another motion and Aaliyah regained control of her head. She began making noises from behind the gag, but couldn't make herself understood.

"Aaliyah," Violet said. "In a moment I am going to release you. You are to place yourself into the pillory so that I can lock it. And know that if you ever again hit me, or anyone else on this show for that matter, that I will personally make sure that your elimination is as awful as it can be made. Nod if you understand me."

Aaliyah glared at her with sheer hatred.

"Pick your battles," Trevor advised her softly. "I'd just go along with this one."

Aaliyah nodded.

"Good," Violet said. She returned Aaliyah's control over her body and the woman slowly made her way to the pillory. Violet was ready in case she tried anything, but Aaliyah complied. She placed her neck and her wrists in the pillory's marble cutouts. Violet lowered the top half of the pillory over her, then used a large padlock to secure the hefty marble blocks in place. Aaliyah's wrists and neck fit snugly in the holes; she would have no way out until Violet released her.

"This is cruel," Trevor whispered as he stared at Aaliyah.

"It's supposed to be," Violet responded. Then she raised her voice, so that Chloe and Natalie could hear in the back. "Nobody is to interfere. Aaliyah will serve the full duration of her punishment. Anyone trying to change that will join her."

Satisfied that the situation was resolved Violet turned to leave, walking down the steps to the oasis. She had work to do.