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“There you are! I thought your ass had chickened out,” Tamlin let out a sigh as Rhysand approached him.
“Chicken out? I really did have to piss, you asshole,” Rhys snapped.
Tamlin rolled his eyes.
“Are we going swimming or not?”
Rhys nodded.
“We are.”
The boys were supposed to be in school - well not quite yet; the bell hadn’t rung; students were still congregating outside the academy and talking.
The boys were planning to sneak off and go swimming in the nearby Lake Aquaria.
The boys shuffled off.
Soon, they had thrown off their uniform tunics and trousers, and jumped in the lake in their undergarments.
“The water feels great!” Tamlin cried.
“Yeah!” Rhys was floating on his back when he suddenly got the urge to splash Tamlin which he did with much gusto.
“Hey! Jerk!” Tamlin scowled but was laughing. He splashed his friend back and soon they were having an all-out water war.
Whooping, hollering, and holding each other underwater.
“I’d so much rather do this than spend another minute in Prythian Geography class,” Rhys groaned.
Tamlin groaned, too.
“Master Hevelius is so boring!” Tamlin agreed with his friend. “Sitting in his class is so painful!”
“You want to know about sitting being painful, boy, I’ll show you!” A stern voice bellowed.
Tamlin and Rhys’ heads whipped in the direction of the sound of the voice.
“Father,” Tamlin’s stomach dropped, as Rhys looked horrified.
“Get. Out. Both of you!” Father wasn’t yelling - Tamlin wished he would; this quiet, intense anger was much more frightening.
Tamlin stole a glance at Rhys who looked like he was going to be sick.
Tamlin shared that sentiment.
The boys begrudgingly got out of the water. They’d packed towels in their satchels and awkwardly dried off as Father watched, not taking his eyes off his son or Rhysand.
Once the boys had dried off, they went to put on their trousers but Father stopped them.
“Not so fast, boys - you won’t be needing those yet,” Father said.
Rhys turned to Tamlin with a horrified facial expression although he should’ve seen that coming.
“Tamlin,” Father said. “Come here.”
Tamlin shuffled over.
Father yanked a branch off a nearby tree and in a flash, he was able to strip it of its twigs and leaves.
“Assume the position, boy,” Father ordered firmly.
Tamlin sighed and bent over, resting his hands on a stump a few feet away.
Father stood behind him.
“Ten lashes.”
Father swished the switch through the air, landing it right in the center of his son’s backside.
“Owww!” Tamlin wailed.
“Silence!” Father ordered, whipping his son again.
Rhys, meanwhile, was sitting on a nearby rock - enjoying his ability to do so while he could. He tried not to look at his friend while he was being punished, but it was difficult.
And Rhys knew he was next.
Finally, Father stopped the whipping.
“Go get dressed, boy.”
“I can’t!” Tamlin whined before he could stop himself.
Father grabbed him by the shoulder.
“Get. Dressed.”
“Yes, Father,” Tamlin sighed, wincing as he pulled his trousers back up.
Rhys, meanwhile, was already bent over the stump - he did not want to delay things any longer than necessary.
Tamlin’s father was a bit surprised at this, but nonetheless, he went behind the boy and stood.
“You will be getting ten as well,” Father raised the switch and delivered the first lash.
Rhys jumped but said nothing; he’d wanted to yell out like Tamlin had but wanted to avoid a scolding.
Rhys took his punishment, face growing redder by the minute, and he tried to fight the tears waiting to trickle down his face.
Tamlin averted his eyes out of respect for his friend, but that didn’t make the sound go away, or make the reminder of his own punishment vanish from his thoughts, and the knowledge Rhys was experiencing the exact same thing.
Finally, at last, Rhys’ punishment was done.
Father tossed the switch in some bushes.
“Alright, Rhysand - you get dressed, too. Then I’m escorting you boys back to school. Rhysand, I will be informing your parents about this.”
“Yes, sir,” Rhysand sighed. He knew he was going to get it all over again once Mother and Father found out.
And not that he wanted his friend to suffer, but he didn’t think it fair that Tamlin’s punishment was all over.
“And son, I’m sure your mother will be having words with you once she finds out what you’ve done,” Father turned to Tamlin, who swallowed.
“Yes, Father.”
The boys could barely focus in their classes after being dropped off at school by Tamlin’s father. He’d been right about sitting being painful - every time the boys sat down at a desk or stood up, they winced, and were met with curious and amused expressions from their classmates.
“Are you guys okay?” Lucien whispered to the pair at lunch.
“No,” they replied in unison.
“Father caught us swimming instead of being at school,” Tamlin sighed. “He took a switch to us.”
Lucien’s backside throbbed in solidarity, and he found himself cringing as well; although he simply mumbled words of sympathy before turning around to snark at one of his passing brothers.
***
That evening, both boys got to experience the wrath of their mothers as well: Rhysand’s mother used her trusty hairbrush, and Tamlin’s mother snagged a wooden spatula from the kitchen. They’d gone to bed pouting, but before drifting off had received hugs - from their mothers, that is. The extent of comfort they’d ever gotten from their fathers was a pat on the shoulder
They slept on their stomachs, but despite all that, they were both planning their next trip to the lake.
But…maybe not on a school day.