TEN MEN IN A TUB (several mm/m)

[Xtc]

TEN MEN IN A TUB

What follows is a relatively short tale concerning a new group of friends.
They have formed a TUB: a Tie-Up Brotherhood.
Well, it was some time ago and it kept them out of trouble.

[Xtc]

TEN MEN IN A TUB (1)


Ten Men in a T(ie) U(p) B(rotherhood)

The Postulants were standing, with their hands on their heads, elbows back, feet apart, legs straight and wearing, as they had been instructed, just football shorts but no underwear. They knew that any breach of the conditions now would see them immediately ejected from the Initiation and allowed nowhere near the clubhouse again. The TUB (Tie Up Brotherhood) was certainly a secret society but not all that secret and the three Postulants wanted in. Even if they passed the initiation, they would only be novices until they had managed to prove their worth to their seniors. The TUB was not only a club for teenage males who enjoyed TUGs but the Brotherhood was just that: no other youngster would cross anyone who was known, or even suspected, to be a Brother because they knew he could rely upon the support of all the other Brothers.

-----00000-----

Things were more relaxed in those days and most people's attitude was that "boys will be boys" and the adults knew that none of their sons had come to any harm as a result of TUB activities and it did keep them out of their parents' hair for most of the school holidays.

The "clubhouse" was a battered old barn that the boys had "improved" over the past four years until it resembled the assembled contents of a scrap yard which, in fact, is exactly what it was. Being a former barn, it was large enough to accommodate most of their activities and it even had a hay-loft for a dormitory. In those days, well water was safe and even earth closets were still around. Not only did the boys have both a well but also a thundershed that the parents had helped them build, but the privy had two deep shafts. Now that was class.

Outsiders never had access to the barn, which was on private property, and strangers were definitely discouraged from intruding not only by Mr V., the somewhat eccentric land owner who had a fondness for discharging a shotgun in the grounds but also by his Rottweiler (Rommel), whose reputation as a hell-hound was surpassed only by his reputation among those who actually knew him as a complete fraud. Between privacy, woodlands, a barn (more or less watertight), a meadow and a wood-burning stove, the boys had most things they needed to keep them out of trouble (sort of).

OK, so back to the candidates. The smallest one was Clive, the wavy-haired blond. He was fairly slight but he was also a footballer with an athletic build. He favoured fairly short white cotton shorts that sat high on his hips and, after being quite a baggy fit, came in quite close to his thighs just under his buttocks. His somewhat angelic face belied the fact that he was thirteen years old.

The tallest Postulant was Adam. He was tall with broad shoulders, a narrow waist and hardly a spare ounce of fat on him. He was another blond but with neatly cut, short, straight hair. His choice of shorts, also white cotton ones, could have been better advised. Being very brief and somewhat baggy they sat low on his hips and would probably only offer adequate coverage all the while he was standing. It was probably a good job he was the stoical one.

That leaves Garry, a pocket Tarzan who favoured the type of fairly shapeless shorts that were common then but they were rather too tight in the circumstances. He was dark skinned and dark haired and the red cotton shorts suited him well. Being just fourteen, he was the oldest of the three but he wasn't exactly the most intellectual of the Postulants.

-----00000-----

The initiation was to take the form of three preliminary challenges during which the Postulants would be kitted out ready for the main event with the winners being allowed to make certain choices before the others and the losers having to accept what was left. Then the initiation proper would follow.

The first challenge was fairly straightforward. Each Postulant had to nominate one of the Brothers to bind his arms and wrists and would then be required to escape the ropes as quickly as possible. Of course, the first to pick would have the advantage of picking the Brother whom he hoped would be the least efficient tier so, in the interests of fairness, the Postulants had to turn their backs on the assembled Brothers and bring their right hands into the smalls of their backs in fists.

Big Brother at the time (Chris, a tall, well made sixteen-year-old with mousey hair) explained the rules and counted, "One, two, three!" and each Postulant had to flick out either one or two fingers. Predictably, the first time all three Postulants flicked "V"s. "OK, that's a draw. Try again. One, two, three." This time Adam kept his nerve and repeated his play while the others produced the "swivel" symbol. "Postulant Adam's the odd man out. He gets first pick." Adam turned around and examined the assembled Brothers. He picked his older brother, Paul; he never reckoned his older brother was any good at anything. Like his brother, Paul was very blond but nowhere near as athletically built or as intelligent as Adam. Indeed, Adam was taller than he was.

Chris told Adam to put both hands on his head once more while he refereed the battle for second place. A simple game of "scissors, paper and stone" gained Clive the honour of next choice. He chose Stumpy, the youngest of the Brothers present because he was a nice guy and a good friend of his. I think his nickname gives you an idea of Stumpy's build. He was glad to have the TUB to get away from his annoying twin.

That left Gary to pick his binder. He chose Francis, the next smallest boy to stumpy. He was dark and somewhat spotty with a college boy haircut and a reasonably athletic and compact physique.

-----00000-----

I don't need to describe how each boy was tied as they were all tied identically. Over the past couple of weeks all the Brothers had entertained themselves by practicing on one another until all members were satisfied that each Postulant would be treated equally. That was going to come as a surprise to some of them.

Each Postulant was called over by his tier and told to bring his arms down by his side while long ropes were doubled and wound round his arms and torso high on his biceps. Francis had to remind Gary not to flex his impressive muscles and, with a resigned look the kid seemed to collapse by several inches. Chris said that he'd remember that for later. Gary looked rueful. Once the free ends had been threaded through the bight and pulled tight, they were both wrapped tidily twice more round the Postulant at the same level. One more pull to tighten the rope preceded the tying of a knot by threading the free ends through the original return loop. As the ropes tightened, Adam started to believe that his brother wasn't so useless after all and Clive questioned his belief that his solid little auburn-haired friend was a genuinely nice guy. A further knot round all the layers completed that part of the bondage leaving plenty of rope with which to continue. Three further layers of rope were then applied in a similar manner just below the victims' pecs, tightened and knotted securely. Gary was sure that Francis was binding him tighter than the others but realised that it would have been unwise to object.

Each of the Postulants then had to lift his forearms behind him until they were horizontal. A certain amount of rather brutal adjustment then proved necessary to make sure that wrists were well crossed before four rounds of doubled rope were wrapped round them and tied off twice before a couple of frapping turns were used to tighten the bindings. Each binder still had enough rope to thread it up through the lower set of biceps ropes and bring it back down round his Postulant's wrists. A classic wrap around the vertical ropes then served the purpose of raising the victim's wrists slightly higher and getting the ends of the rope out of the way of prying fingers before being tied off finally.

These guys HAD been practicing!

Once all binders had finished, Chris gave the command and the struggle to escape started.

-----00000-----

After the first ten minutes all the bound boys were rolling round on the floor in their efforts to work the ropes loose. More thought went into the tie than you might believe, with their arms pulled so firmly to their sides, there was no need to tie the Postulants' wrists painfully tightly and the idea was not to cause pain, just to make it difficult for them to escape.

Adam regretted his choice of garment as soon as he was no longer standing but the Brothers were used to such embarrassment in addition to which the solemnity of a ceremonial initiation ensured that no comments were passed on the event other than the cursing that was emanating from Adam himself. Gary nearly pulled his own shorts down as he struggled on the floor but a grinning Francis pulled them up again for him, rather more brutally than Gary really appreciated.

After about half an hour Clive had created some slack in his wrist bindings and by sheer application of engineering against the corner of a conveniently placed shelf managed to free his right wrist. Being the most flexible and slight of the Postulants allowed him, with a further application of common sense, to reach the final knots. It must have hurt somewhat as he forced his elbow further behind him and leaned it on the shelf to force it higher but, other than understandable grunting noises, he didn't show it. He was free inside an hour to applause from the Brothers but, after a few minutes recovery time, he still had to stand in the hands on head position once more.

Having seen how Clive solved the problem, Gary tried to force his elbows closer together but muscles aren't made to work in that direction without mechanical assistance and no one bothered to tell him that he was trying to move his arms in the wrong direction. Even Adam's long levers had been completely nullified by a determined older, if not bigger, brother who had a point to make.

After another fifteen minutes, Chris offered the still struggling Postulants a token of help. Both were too stubborn and proud to take the offer - at least the first time it was made. The binders kept a careful eye on their subjects, not to see that they didn't cheat but to check the colour of their hands. After another five minutes Chris insisted that the last knots be untied and the ropes unwrapped as far as the victim's wrists.
To cut a long story short, Gary was free in a further ten minutes by a process of repeated flexing and using Clive's shelf to force the top layers of rope up over his shoulders. He was known as a hard man but that grazing must have hurt. He turned down the offer of first aid until he had freed himself.

With Gary free, Adam, who had made hardly any headway at all, gave up the struggle and, knowing he had come last, waited to be released.

"Give up?"

"Well, I've come last, why do I need to keep on trying?"

"Ask Paul nicely and he might untie you." That was too much to expect and a sweaty and exhausted Adam took another half hour before he was free.

Gary agreed to have his grazes treated and even he had difficulty not reacting when Francis applied the antiseptic cream. Adam just adjusted his shorts, nursed his aches and pains and mentally plotted his revenge on his nerd of a brother.

TBC

[Veracity]

Superb.

[Xtc]

Thank you.

[blackbound]

And so the games begin again... looking forward to the trials and tribulations of these three (or more?)

[Xtc]

Ooh, we'll just have to see.
Thank you for the support.

[Xtc]

 

TEN MEN IN A TUB (2)


The Postulants Settle In

Once all the Postulants had time to recover and to take on much needed water, they had to return to the hands on head posture for the official verdict and "trophy" presentation.

Jake was the Quartermaster and he produced a tray that he had set and covered with a tea towel and stood with it in front of the Postulants. He was tall, tanned and round faced and renowned for hard work on behalf of the TUB.

In spite of a slight stammer, Chris was articulate and rather fond of delivering pre-planned addresses. Now was the ideal opportunity. "Brothers and Postulants, the result can be in no doubt. The winner is Postulant Clive and he must get first choice from the tray. Postulant Gary continued the struggle even though he must be hurting more than a bit; he gets second pick from the tray. Postulant Adam: although he came last, I think he'll make a good novice because he also kept up the struggle until he had succeeded. However, he'll have to take what's left. Brother Glenn, reveal the trophies".

A mature looking, athletic boy with no spare fat and very square shoulders lifted the tea towel from the tray. The Postulants didn't like what they were seeing. On the tray were three items and even Gary could figure out what would happen next.

"Clive Quinn, make your choice and put it on. Nothing else, just the item you choose." There was no choice as far as Clive was concerned, he chose the black brief-cut swimming costume and took it over to a corner, dropped his shorts and pulled the new garment into place. By some miracle, it fitted him properly.

"Gary Churn, make your choice and put it on. Nothing else, just the item you choose." Gary felt that he was caught between the devil and the deep blue sea but the jockstrap was probably the better option so he took it and changed.

That left two Postulants dressed for their forthcoming ordeals and standing with their hands on their heads and the other standing dumb-struck. "Adam Smith, you must take the remaining garment and put it on. Nothing else, just that garment."

"Oh well, it can't be much worse than what happened to me when I popped out of my shorts just now. I accept." He took what was basically a draw cord with two small curtains hanging from it. The loin cloth would cover his genitals and his arse as long as there was no wind! Once it was in place, the aprons at front and back hung nearly to Adam's knees. He arranged them to as near to his satisfaction as was possible and returned his hands to his head.

"Gentlemen, time for a break, I think. You can drop your hands for a while. Take a look round and we'll answer any questions.

-----00000-----

The Postulants explored the barn and its immediate surroundings and, having seen everything other than the contents of a couple of locked metal cabinets, were able to ask any relevant questions over the packed lunches that all the boys had brought. Chris eventually called the meeting to order and the Postulants once more adopted the hands-on-head, legs straight, feet apart stance while he outlined the next contest.

"The Postulants have shown us how they can escape from ropes; now they must show us how they can tie someone else up. To make it fair, you will each tie up the same Brother and we'll time him to see how long you can keep him restrained. Brother Glenn was the last to arrive so he will be the subject. Get ready, Brother. As the winner of the first event, Postulant Clive will go first.

Glenn, like the other brothers was in "uniform"; to turn up in normal clothes would not have been acceptable. He sat on a bench to slip off his trainers and socks before undoing his leather belt and slipping off his shorts. Once he had pulled his polo shirt over his head, his lean but well-defined physique could be clearly seen although his neatly dressed, mid-brown, wavy hair had completely lost its style. He was left in nothing but a pair of black mini-briefs ready to play his part in the initiation.

Jake produced two long ropes and one shorter one whilst Chris explained that each of the Postulants would have five minutes to bind Glenn using only the three ropes after which the stopwatch would be started. Time would be up as soon as Glenn had managed to cross the threshold whether or not he had managed to escape all the ropes.

"Oh, there's just one more thing. You two," Chris indicated Gary and Adam, "will need to be blindfolded so that you can't learn from Postulant Clive's mistakes. And just to keep you from temptation, your wrists will need to be bound as well." The two boys, of course, had the choice: accept the conditions or withdraw. No one was forcing them to stay.

Before Chris gave the countdown for Clive to start, Gary had his wrists square-lashed behind him but not exactly very strictly and a bandage wrapped multiple times round his eyes and simply tucked in. Francis helped him across to a wall and sat him down on the floor. Paul still had a point to make to his unfortunate brother so, before he was positioned against the opposite wall, Adam found his wrists bound comparatively tightly with his hands palm to palm and with a strip of Elastoplast pushed into the contours of his face and robbing him of sight.

"Oh, come on, Paul, that's going a bit far, isn't it?"

"And your point is?"

"Well, that's going to hurt when it comes off. Think about his eyebrows."

"Oh, I am - I am," grinned a gleeful Paul. Adam was in no position to tell his brother what he thought of him but his time would come when they were at home and their parents were out.

-----00000-----

"When you're ready, Brother Glenn will be as cooperative as possible but no tying his naughty bits, understand?" Glenn gave Clive one of those threatening looks; there was nothing in the rules about that. Clive nodded. "Ready?" Clive confirmed that he was. "Three, two, one, five minutes - - - go!"

Clive had no time to think, he just needed to get on with things. Going first was certainly a disadvantage; even if they couldn't see what he was doing, at least his competitors had time to think and plan. They could even get some feedback from the comments of the Brothers.

Being a novice, Clive didn't spot the way Glenn crossed his hands behind him and let him get away with it as he wound one of the longer ropes several times vertically round them before tying it off. He asked whether he was allowed to tether his subject and was told that he could, so he asked him to walk over to one of several hefty vertical posts that were the remains of the previous animal stalls and to cross his ankles around it. Using the second longish rope, Clive made a reasonable fist of cross-lashing Glenn's ankles round the post and Glenn more or less fell onto his back. Clive said that he was ready so Chris re-started the stopwatch.

Clive couldn't see Glenn twisting his right wrist until his fists were no longer at right-angles thus loosening the bindings but he did see him lifting his wrists higher up his back until the loops were even looser. It was just a matter of patience and repeated flexing of his now relaxed right hand until Glenn managed to withdraw it from the binding. The loose loops just fell off his left wrist as he withdrew his arms from under him. He used his newly freed hands to pull himself upright against the post and fumbled behind it to locate Clive's finest knots. By the time he had hauled himself to his feet and run for the door, Glenn had only been bound for eleven minutes and thirty-four seconds. Clive somehow doubted that he would win this particular contest.

Glenn asked for some recovery time while Stumpy started to bind Clive. Jake asked if that was necessary now that he had already had his go and the assembled company decided that it probably wasn't so Clive was free and without a blindfold while Gary was being freed ready for his turn. Gary waited impatiently for Glenn to be ready for him.

The first thing that Adam could hear, once Chris had called, "Go!" was Gary's voice. "Oh no, not like that, palm to palm." Glenn's first stratagem had not worked and his wrists were soon bound and cinched even leaving Gary some rope to bind the ultra-flexible Glenn's elbows uncomfortably close together. The slender athlete tottered rather precariously as Gary knelt down to bind his ankles and underneath his knees in a similar way. By now Gary had almost forgotten that he was bare-arsed as he applied himself to his task in a single-minded manner. Let's face it: Gary worked well as long as he was given a list of only one thing to do. Glenn nearly tumbled onto his captor who reacted quickly and supported him as he stood upright again. Then it dawned on him that, even though he thought he had tied Glenn up well, they were both standing in the middle of the barn.

"Sorry Mush, I need to get you over there." Gary indicated the vertical post furthest from the door. Perhaps he wasn't that thick after all.

"It's OK Mate, I'll cooperate but you'll have to help me. I don't fancy falling over like this." and Glenn tried to move his wrists out from behind him to demonstrate his predicament. Gary took him by both arms while Glenn bunny hopped over to the large, square post.

"OK, I'm going to lay you down, alright?" Glenn said it was OK and he soon found himself lying on his side with the post in the small of his back. Gary knelt down and tied one end of the remaining rope between Glenn's wrists. He didn't pull his subject's feet too close to his wrists as he tied the other end between his ankles but the hefty post certainly limited Glenn's scope for movement. He only just got finished as Chris called "Time!" and Glenn began to struggle.

Without the post limiting his movement, Glenn would have worked the hogtie rope so that he could reach the knots near his ankles and work from there but that wasn't so easy in his current situation. He couldn't even see whether it was worth kicking as violently as possible in order to work one of the knots to the end of the hogtie rope. It took him an increasingly painful half hour before he managed to undo Gary's final knot although the penultimate one was easier even though his frequent close encounters with the post were leaving him quite bruised. It was a matter of pride not to submit even though he knew that, if he did, his friends would release him immediately.

A bruised and exhausted Glenn managed to roll himself out of the door, still bound hand, foot and knee even though the rope had come adrift from his elbows in a time of thirty-five minutes and seven seconds.

"OK, you tied him up. Now you release him." Gary knelt down and untied his captive. Upon seeing the bruises and rope marks, he apologised to Glenn sincerely. Glenn congratulated him and shook his hand.

"Sorry Lads, this kid's good, I'm going to need to take a breather. Sorry Adam, you'll have to wait." That was the last thing Adam wanted to hear as he sat in the dark with his brother's rope work digging into his wrists but his release would be a double-edged sword; there was also all that pink sticky elastoplast to remove. Paul went over to him and explained that he was about to untie the ropes. Adam struggled to his feet and Paul did as he had said before offering to help him with the blindfold. Having turned away from the wall to be untied, he was able to back away blindly before Paul could "help" him.

"OK, suit yourself." Paul retired to a bench. He was going to enjoy the next bit. Adam was, to say the least, conflicted. He knew he was about to lose a fair portion of his eyebrows and even some of the hair from his temples where that vindictive little wimp had stuck the plaster far more widely than was necessary just to stop him seeing. He had to make the decision: fast or slow. The yell was epic! Adam toughed it out and gave one big tug removing both the sticking plaster and at least half of his right eyebrow. Even for such a blond as Adam the loss was very evident. He hadn't even considered how he'd explain it to their dad.

It took a good three quarters of an hour for Glenn to announce that he was ready for the next Postulant following a much-needed visit to a tree. Adam took a close look at Glenn, who was a friend of his, and he wasn't sure that he wanted to compound the bruising that he had already received. Glenn put it this way: "First off, if you don't do your best to tie me up properly, this lot will notice. But I can't win: if I escape quickly, they'll know you didn't do it properly and if I can't escape, they'll think I'm not trying." Glenn put both hands on his friend's shoulders. "Come on Mate, do you worst."

As they stood there, the contrast between the physiques of the two friends became even more obvious than it had previously seemed. As I have said, there wasn't enough fat on both of them together to fry a chip. The slimmer Glenn was brilliantly defined but lacked the broad-shouldered, deep-chested solidity of Adam.

Adam took one of the longer ropes and told his friend to cross his wrists. Sure enough, Glenn tried to make room but Adam told him not to try it on and that, if he wanted him to do it properly, he would make sure both his palms were facing backwards. Glenn grinned and nodded gently as he did as he was told. Adam forced his arms higher and started with a clove hitch around them. Glen wondered what had happened to his mate's concern for his bruises. Adam had obviously taken him at his word and the subject soon had his wrists cocooned in rope which was then cinched off leaving enough rope to tie round his neck as long as his wrists were forced a bit higher.

"Hey! No Mate, sorry, that's dangerous. We don't want him strangled when he struggles." Jake was always the voice of reason on such matters.

"Oh, I don't know, he won't ever be last to arrive again." Francis didn't seem so sympathetic.

Adam apologised and didn't complete the knot allowing Glenn to drop his wrists slightly at the expense of increased pain as the ropes dug in once more.

"OK Glenn, on your belly, please." Glenn laid himself down and raised his ankles upon demand. Adam bound them with enough rope and firmly enough to stop him drawing his knees together. "Sorry, this won't take too long, sorry." Adam dragged the slighter boy over to one of the vertical posts and left him face down against it while he collected the last rope he was allowed. Glenn prepared himself to be rolled onto his side and hogtied round the post again. Unfortunately for Adam, he hadn't seen the treatment previously meted out to his friend and he had to come up with his own solution. He threaded the shortest rope between Glenn's wrists and then between his legs and Glen got ready to have his ankles pulled tightly up to his wrists in a hogtie. He was surprised when it didn't happen and Adam knotted the rope off forming a loose loop around the post.

Adam announced that he was ready and Chris started the watch.

Glenn had a dilemma: should he not try his damnedest so that his good mate would win or should he do his best? Obviously, he could escape from the shorter rope much more quickly than he removed Gary's hogtie rope but the others could see that as well. He tried twisting his wrists but got nowhere so he started working the loop of rope round until he could reach the reef knot securing him in place. It was a simple matter to undo it.

Glenn was now free of the post and merely had to work his way to the door. This time he wouldn't be able to roll so easily as his knees were still held quite a distance apart. His wriggling was comical and even his Brothers kept making "helpful" suggestions. Glenn knew he'd have to go for it and nearly dragged his briefs down as he scraped his backside against the floor. It wouldn't have been the first time any of the Brothers had seen him like that but he did manage to come through the ordeal with his delicate parts still covered.

"Thirteen minutes and twenty-four seconds. Let's leave the presentation of trophies until after dinner." Chris's suggestion went down well as it would leave time for a kick-around while dinner was prepared. Jake and Stumpy set to work using two powerful Calor Gas burners just as Ryan arrived.

TBC

 

[harveygasson]

Cool start and another great series to come I'm sure

[Xtc]

Thanks for the support.

[Xtc]

TEN MEN IN A TUB (3)


The Rules and Other Procedures

I think I had better explain some of the more important rules of the TUB. I haven't got room to explain all of them because they have lots; the more rules there are, the more opportunities there will be to punish one another for breaking them.

1) All Brothers in the Barn will be in uniform (unless they are being tied up when they will be allowed to keep their underpants).
2) Any Brother who is late for a meeting will pay a forfeit.
3) Any Brother who fails to attend a meeting without telling Big Brother the day before will pay a second level forfeit
4) If no Brother is late or has a previous forfeit to pay, the last Brother to arrive will pay a forfeit.
5) What happens in the Barn stays in the Barn.

I think you will get the idea from the above extract. Most rues end in, " . . . will pay a forfeit."

Official uniform requirements:
1) Sandals/flip-flops or trainers and socks may be worn.
2) Underpants will be briefs.
3) Shorts with leather belts will be worn. (Shorts will comply with rule 37)
4) Plain polo shirts will be worn (with a white v-neck t-shirt in cold weather).
5) A smartly tied neckerchief of the Brother's own choosing will be worn.
6) No other clothing may be worn in the Barn. (See footnote U1 for exceptions)
7) Any Brother who is old enough to shave must do so.

The uniform is illustrated on one of Glenn's very fine line drawings which has a prominent place on one wall next to where the Rule Book is hanging. The drawing shows the rear view of a boy. The right-hand side is clothed and the left side is not. There is an arrow running from the left buttock crease to the back of the knee and another from the crease to a point half way down the thigh to indicate the greatest length of leg permitted on shorts. Most boys use cut-off jeans once the knees have gone but any old cut-off trousers will do as long as they have belt loops. Belts are so useful. As are neckerchiefs.

When the weather is cold, access is gained to one of the winnowing eaves which has been converted into a separate room that has a wood burning stove in it and even an oil powered heater that the boys had salvaged from a scrap yard. That way, they consider that they haven't "legally" entered the barn and can wear their outside clothes until the room heats up. I leave you to decide what happens to the last Brother to arrive.

-----00000-----

Ryan was a small, pale, wizened, rather old-fashioned looking boy and he arrived in a crash of mountain bike against barn wall. He might well now have been the smallest Brother present but he was a dedicated member of the TUB and one of its most determined and reliable members.

"Sorry I'm late, Brothers. My mum found out what happened to that sheet I 'borrowed' for last weekend's activities and Terry wasn't there to rescue me." The Brothers immediately understood the implications of the statement. Terry was Ryan's step-dad and Ryan worshipped him. He could also wrap him around his little finger. His mum, however, was nowhere near the pushover her husband was. Ryan was playing the sympathy card. Surely his Brothers would understand.

The arms akimbo and arms folded postures and the unsmiling looks adopted by his Brothers spoke more eloquently than any words could ever have done, so Ryan started to strip. Once he was in just his printed yellow y-fronts, he presented his wrists for restraint but Chris ruled that it could wait until after dinner. Ryan set about getting the crockery and cutlery and rearranging the benches and trestle tables.

Eventually the footballers were called in to eat and the Brothers sat at table while the Postulants had to sit on the floor to eat. The meal was consumed and guess who had to do the washing up. Ryan drew a bucket of water from the well and resignedly got on with the job having warmed it on one of the burners first.

-----00000-----

Chris called the Brotherhood to order. It was time for the "trophies" to be presented prior to the last of the preliminary games. Glenn was now properly dressed in his uniform that featured a cut-off pair of old charcoal grey school trousers that he had not bothered to hem, a white polo shirt and red neckerchief. He had by now recovered somewhat from his previous ordeal even though he'd have the rope marks for quite some time so he whipped the cover off the tray to reveal three devices that didn't exactly fill the Postulants with delight.

"Does any Postulant wish to withdraw?" Even Clive, who was going to get last "pick", stood firm. "Gary Churn, make your choice and put it in. Make sure it is tight." Gary chose the rubber bit gag and obediently buckled it behind his head. Francis gave it a hefty tug, pronounced himself satisfied and slipped a small padlock onto the buckle. The Postulants were starting to discover what was stored in the two locked cupboards. Over the past four years the TUB had amassed quite a stash of equipment.

"Adam Smith, make your choice and put it in. Make sure it is tight." Adam chose the panel gag, inserted the plug into his mouth and buckled it firmly against his lips. Paul inserted two fingers between his brother's face and the padded front panel before tightening it by one hole and padlocking it securely. He didn't seem to realise the problems he was storing up for himself, after all, he could hardly appeal to his father for protection against his younger brother especially after what he was doing to him.

"Clive Quinn, you must take the remaining item and put it in . . ."

"I know:", said the blond kid resignedly, "Make sure it is tight." He took the medium sized ball gag from the tray and tightened it to Stumpy's satisfaction. He was soon locked into it.

With the gags in place Chris gave the Postulants one more chance to withdraw before calling for hands on heads while he explained the next preliminary competition.

-----00000-----

"In the first competition, you had to untie yourselves and in the second one you had to tie someone else. The last of the prelims. requires you to untie someone else." That sounded easy. "There's just one more thing: you have to find him first." So, there was a snag after all.

Ryan knew that he would be one of the subjects for tying up and Glenn was preparing himself as well but who would the other tie-e be?

"Big Brother, don't you think Brother Glenn has paid his forfeit already? I'll take his place." That was not an unusual offer from Jake. As Quartermaster he sometimes missed out on being tied and what's the point of being in a tie-up club if you don't get a turn? Whoever was Big Brother at the time also missed out somewhat but a new one was appointed every two months to rotate the duties round the membership. It was agreed that Jake could be one subject so he went to his pack to get a clean pair of socks and started his strip. For such a large and "well made" boy, his normal choice of slip-type briefs often gave him rather less concealment than other garments would have done but he didn't seem to worry about that as he rearranged himself inside them and laid out his belt and his neckerchief ready for their next use

The procedure was all a bit of a mystery to the postulants because no-one had yet seen fit to explain the details of the task ahead of them but Ryan also went for a pair of socks. As a defaulter, he wasn't allowed a clean pair and had to use the ones he had worn to cycle to the Barn. They were a real boy's pair of socks: each one had a hole in it and they were far from clean. Ryan also laid out his belt and necker.

Francis asked who the third subject was going to be. Bad move! By asking, it was generally agreed that he had volunteered. He knew there was no point in debating the matter and was soon wearing just a pair of royal blue briefs with "sting vest" style side panels.

-----00000-----

The Postulants had the competition explained to them and were asked if they had any questions. "Oops, sorry, I forgot." added a disingenuous Big Brother as Adam protested into his panel gag.

In essence, they were expected to go on sort of scavenger hunt. The quarry was to be one of the subjects. Each of the postulants had to search for and find a specific target, untie him and return him to the barn. It was as easy as that. However, there were some necessary preliminaries. Chris, Stumpy and Paul bound the postulants' hands behind them fairly securely and removed their neckerchiefs to blindfold them so that they couldn't see where their quarry would be heading. The quarry readied themselves to be taken away.

Jake inserted one rolled sock in his mouth and followed it by the other that wasn't rolled but contributed to the packing of his mouth. It wouldn't do for the hunted Brothers to be able to call out to the Postulants. Once he had tightened his belt round the gag, he then folded his neckerchief and requested permission to wrap his face with it by a process of mime . Permission was granted and Glenn went for a large roll of wide gaffer tape. At least with his scarf folded like that, Jake hoped that he could avoid the worst effects of trying to remove gaffer tape from his hair. Glenn wrapped the silver tape tightly over Jake's neckerchief, letting it overlap onto his chin and his cheeks but keeping it off his hair at the back. Glenn then set about tying him in a similar manner to the one in which the postulants had been tied earlier that day and announced that the blindfold could wait until he'd reached his destination. Jake sat and made himself as comfortable as possible in the circumstances until the other two Brothers had been prepared. The postulants didn't really notice that the target Brothers had been tied much more securely and with a few extra refinements than they had been earlier but these three certainly wouldn't be able to get free as quickly as they had even assuming that they would even try.

Ryan made a plea to be allowed clean socks as well but, having arrived late, the plea fell on deaf ears so he resignedly rolled the sweaty objects and stuffed them in his mouth and started to hold them in place with his belt. "I don't think so." Chris's intervention was ominous. "As a late arrival, I think you shouldn't have it as easy as Brother Jake. All in favour?" Four hands shot into the air. "Motion passed." Ryan was forced to roll his green rough silk necker and tie a bulky knot in the middle of it which Chris forced against his socks in his mouth and tied tightly round his scruffy little head. "NOW use your belt." The barely audible squeak that issued from Ryan was not just the result of the tightness with which he'd buckled his own belt but doubled as a despairing sigh when he realised that his neckerchief wasn't likely to provide much, if any, protection against the forthcoming gaffer tape that Chris was already brandishing.

It wasn't long before Ryan's puffed-out cheeks had been deflated by enough gaffer tape to cover the entire lower portion of his face and even the underside of his chin. Even his ragged, short haircut could not protect him from Big Brother's determined effort to cover as much of his target area as possible. The tallest of the Brothers then bound the arms and wrists of the smallest. When he had finished, there was almost as much rope and tape as there was of Ryan.

By the time Ryan had been dealt with, Francis had successfully begged permission to be gagged in the same way as Jake and simply needed Chris to do the honours with the silver tape before Glenn secured his upper limbs in the approved fashion. Francis wasn't particularly athletic but he had reasonable pecs and a relatively narrow waist and was a keen swimmer. That kept him in reasonable nick and he had quite an explosive sprint start as well as surprising stamina over cross country courses.

The Postulants were told that their targets were about to be taken to pre-arranged positions where they would be tied to trees. They were also told that they needn't start searching too near the Barn. Stumpy told Clive that he would be looking for Jake, grabbed an old boot bag, stuffed a rope into it and escorted the Quartermaster from the Barn. Glenn went on escort duty for Ryan having told Gary that he was to look for him once he was released and Paul told his brother that he was to search for Francis. The two of them then started out at a jog.

The escorts with their quarry had spread to different parts of the property by the time they came to a halt. As usual the conditions under which the quarry were to be tethered had been decided beforehand and each of them ended up sitting against a tree with a boot bag over his head effectively blindfolding him. The escorts removed their belts, told their charges to cross their ankles, doubled their belts and slipped their subjects' ankles through in opposite directions before tightening them sufficiently to keep their knees apart and prevent them from standing. The ropes that had been packed were tied loosely round the subjects' necks with non-slip knots (re-tied figure of eight knots, if you're interested) and the free ends were then tied several times out of reach behind the trees. The escorts then made themselves scarce and headed back to the Barn by circuitous routes.

-----00000-----

One by one the escorts returned to the Barn and, once all had returned, Chris, Stumpy and Paul reclaimed their neckerchiefs and untied the Postulants. Final instructions were given which, if they were not carried out exactly, would result in disqualification before the gagged and individually attired Postulants went on their way. It would be like looking for a needle in a haystack and they knew that their quarry could do very little to attract their attention any more than they could call out to their targets. It was merely luck and Clive was glad he was looking for the more prominent Jake instead of the easier to conceal Ryan.

TBC

[ThatDino]

Please be sure to gender tag for orientation.

[Xtc]

Hmmm. . . who do you think you are, [mention]ThatDino[/mention] ? [mention]bondagefreak[/mention] ?

Thanks for the reminder. I'll do it now.

[blackbound]

It's a good thing everyone's a man of their word here; so many temptations for meddling with the process...

[Xtc]

You wouldn't question the word of a gentleman, surely (shock - horror!)
Glad you're on board with this one.

[Xtc]

TEN MEN IN A TUB (4)


More Familiarity; More Restraints.

All three postulants had the opportunity to become familiar with the estate as they searched. Predictably, the targets had been taken as far away from the barn as possible and were secured distantly from one another.

Francis was settled uncomfortably against a large oak tree. The bark was abrasive and the root upon which Paul had sat him wasn't much less comfortable than the fallen twigs upon which he found himself sitting following a determined, if constrained, bout of wriggling. Now all he had to do was figure out how to remove the scratchy debris that had worked its way into his underpants.

He had no way of knowing how long he had been there before he heard someone approaching. He knew it was almost certain to be one of his Brothers or one of the Postulants so he tried his best to call out. He heard the footsteps speed up and then stop right next to him followed by a frustrated snort. Gary realised that the hooded boy was nowhere near skinny enough to be Ryan but he thought he'd better lift the boot bag off his head and try to apologise. The bit allowed him at least to make himself understood as he crouched in front of the tanned and disappointed target before he replaced the bag and tied it loosely round his neck and ran off again.

After he'd gone about three hundred yards, Gary saw Adam approaching and trying to maintain at least a modicum of decency as he adjusted his red loincloth. The ensuing conversation was somewhat enigmatic.

"Mmmmm ooov?" Adam shrugged his shoulders as he asked.

"Ngowh." lied Gary shaking his head. He hoped that Adam wouldn't keep going to where he had just come from. The conversation might not have achieved much but it would have been antisocial not to have said anything.

Gary's hopes were in vain and Adam soon encountered Francis. He undid Gary's knot and removed the bag from his much-relieved target's head. He could hardly ask what he should untie first but Francis managed to get over that he really wanted the gag removed. Adam unwrapped the tape without causing any discomfort and unbuckled the strap while causing very little more. Francis worked his soggy socks out of his mouth and issued a much relieved, "Thanks," to Adam.

Between them the two boys soon had Francis completely unfettered and the little guy fished all the scratchy debris out of his briefs. Adam stowed all the restraints in the boot bag and slung it over his shoulders and both boys made off for the barn as quickly as they could. Adam had certainly won that particular competition but he still wasn't allowed to sit on a bench. Knowing he'd won, he was quite content sitting on the floor once having arranged his embarrassing attire and hoping, without success, to overhear what the "trophies" were to be this time around.

It just wasn't Gary's event; the next target he encountered was Jake and, realising that he was already probably being beaten by Adam, he didn't even stop but kept searching for his own diminutive target.

Clive was in luck. At least, he was so compared to Gary whom he saw disappearing in the distance as he eventually approached the uncomplaining figure of Jake as he sat cross-legged between the roots of a large beech tree. Stumpy had even cleared all the beech mast and other debris out of the way before securing his charge. Following a process of untying during which Clive wished he could have made himself understood in order to have been able to work more efficiently, the tall guy with the boot bag over his shoulder and the slight blond jogged into the barn. The ball gag effectively mangled the cry of relief as Clive realised that at least he hadn't come last.

Once Clive and Jake had arrived, it was a good half hour before Gary and Ryan appeared. Ryan was still feeling sore from where Gary had ripped the tape that was holding his gag in place free before he had the chance to do it himself. He couldn't blame him but he couldn't help wondering how much of his raggedy haircut had been involuntarily restyled.

Once all three Postulants had returned and Jake and Francis had changed into uniform, the Postulants were called to order once more. The three boys standing with their hands on their heads, feet apart, legs straight and elbows back were facing a table and were about to find out about their trophies. They also hoped to hear about tomorrow's initiation.

Big Brother started his address. "P-postulants will choose their restraints for tomorrow's trial." At the end of a day Chris's stammer often became more prominent. "Brother G-glenn and Brother S-stumpy, reveal the trophies."

With a flourish the two Brothers lifted the back of the sheet that was covering whatever was on the table. "Ta-dah!" So saying, the two boys dropped the sheet off the front of the table. If the postulants were not still gagged, their reactions would have been much more distinct.

"Postulant Adam, approach the t-table and make your choice ready for t-tomorrow. Adam inspected the three piles of equipment and calculated what would give him the best chance of escaping. He moved towards the table and put his hands on the pile of rope. He felt sorry for Gary who would have the last choice. "Very well, return to your place." Adam moved back to stand between Gary, who wasn't exactly looking too happy, and Clive. As he put his hands on his head again, he couldn't help noticing the smug look on Clive's normally angelic face.

"Postulant Clive, ap-p-roach the table and make your choice ready for tomorrow." There was no decision to make and Clive went over, put his hands on the pile of gaffer tape and returned to his place. "Postulant Gary, do you wish to withdraw?"

Gary had a reputation to maintain and, in any case, now he'd come this far already, to withdraw would mean more loss of face than he was prepared to tolerate. "Ngo. I ca' 'anbuw i'."

"Well said, Postulant. You get the chains."

-----00000-----

It was getting rather late in the evening now and there was no point in doing anything else towards the initiation before the next day and there were other things to do before the light went completely.

"OK, you three, we'll get the gags off you and R-ryan will give your kit a rinse through ready for tomorrow. You can put your shorts on again . . . Brothers! Are they allowed pants or not?" The Brotherhood decided, to Adam's considerable relief, that the Postulants had earned the privilege of underwear and they were soon decently clad and able to speak once more. Ryan collected the cast-of "clothing" and set about paying the remainder of his forfeit as the rest of the boys addressed the task of getting a camp-fire going. No one thought of offering the Postulants the privilege of footwear but none of them even expected it.

As all ten boys settled down for a late evening camp-fire chat, many topics were covered, not all relevant to the TUB but all attempts by the Postulants discover the nature of tomorrow's "trial" were completely unsuccessful! Stumpy made a large pot of cocoa using the stuff that already had milk in it and Paul produced a large pack of biscuits that had miraculously survived the journey to the barn.

Round about midnight, it was generally agreed that it was time to retire and Francis was warned what would happen to him if he kept everybody awake like he did last time. How could they be so nasty to someone who could affect such an innocent and misunderstood expression? Everybody climbed up into the loft where their sleeping bags were already positioned, stripped down to their underpants and climbed into or onto their sleeping bags. Gary regretted not having thought to bring a pillow and conversation gradually petered out in favour of gentle breathing until Francis started snoring. An "accidental" back-hander from Glenn soon stopped that or at least delayed its resumption until everyone else had managed to get to sleep.
 

TBC

[Xtc]

TEN MEN IN A TUB (5)


A Brand New Tying Day

The next morning from about seven o'clock the Brothers started rising. Most just found some footwear and made their way to the thundershed before washing in well water if they considered themselves to be dirty enough. Underwear was changed and uniforms put on. Glenn and Chris started frying eggs and bacon while Ryan set the table for the Brothers and produced the cereals and ketchup. Francis and Paul banked up the fire, reconfigured it, fuelled it and made it suitable for cooking before putting two kettles on to boil. The Brotherhood had developed the morning routine over several years and anyone who wasn't prepared to take his turn at the various tasks would no longer have been welcome in the Brotherhood.

With all the Brothers busy, the Postulants weren't sure of exactly what they should do. Adam was desperate for a pee and simply made his way to the thundershed wearing just the yellow mini-briefs that were about the only style that would fit under his white shorts. Chris confirmed that it was in order and that the other postulants could stay in their briefs until it was time to change for the still unspecified challenge that was ahead of them.

By the time breakfast was completed, all seven Brethren were in full uniform with Gary in just his brown printed nylon briefs and Clive in his M & S white slip. The Postulants were told that they were on washing up and to use the water that was in the two large kettles. The inevitable kick around started while Jake sorted out the morning brew.

By about half past nine, when all the washing up (other than the tea mugs, and who ever washes them?) was complete and the barn rendered as tidy as it ever was, even the barefoot Postulants had joined in with the informal football game. Chris checked his watch and called the company to order. By ten o'clock, the three Postulants were gagged and "dressed" ready for their forthcoming ordeal.

Big Brother explained that the trial had nothing to do with escaping and that anyone who needed it would be re-tied at any stage. Adam immediately wished he'd taken the tape option and Gary was feeling better about his own presumed misfortune.

-----00000-----

As preparations were made, the unmistakable sound of Mr. V and his shotgun could be heard. All the Brothers were accustomed to the noises and the possible subsequent encounters with the landowner and his inseparable canine companion. There was no need to interrupt proceedings. As I said: it was a more innocent time and the ancient eccentric was used to finding boys he knew tied to trees and other things that might have fazed anybody else. Actually, it would be good if he, or more precisely Rommel, could meet the three new boys who were standing with their hands on their heads once more. Once met they would be less likely to be seen off next time.

Still the postulants had no idea what ordeal lay before them but the Brethren went efficiently about their duties. First they split into teams. It was decided that Clive would need more "attendants" than the other postulants so Jake and Chris said that they'd help Stumpy who was getting several rolls of gaffer tape ready. Ryan said that he'd help Paul with his brother and that left Glenn helping Francis with the chaining of Gary. All necessary equipment was gathered so the next stage of the initiation could proceed.

Alright, the postulants knew what was due to be used to bind them but surely there was going to be more to it than that? Still the Brothers had given no clue and, gagged as they were, the postulants could no longer try to wheedle any details out of their close-mouthed "hosts".

-----00000-----

Gary was probably the easiest to confine ready for his forthcoming trial especially as he intended to cooperate. In fewer than five minutes he was standing in just a jockstrap with a bit gag in his mouth and his body generously festooned in a considerable length of short-linked chain and several padlocks. Nothing was too good for the TUB's guests.

Francis told his postulant to lie on his back so that Glenn could hold his legs to make things easier for him. He slipped the hasp of a fair-sized padlock through one end link of the chain and linked it into another leaving a reasonably tight loop around Gary's right ankle. Being in no real hurry, Francis took the trouble to use the same padlock to chain the muscular, dark skinned boy's ankles together whilst leaving hardly any gap between them. He'd done this before.

"Postulant Gary will stand up," announced Francis rather formally but, after all, this was a very formal occasion. With his hands still free the prisoner stood quite easily but he knew that, if he lost his balance, he was unlikely to be unable to avoid falling. "Right, hands behind you." Upon Gary's doing as he was told, Glenn lifted his wrists until his forearms were more-or-less horizontal and trapped the chain that Francis had raised between them and his back. As the chain was brought down again, Glenn used another padlock to form a loop encompassing both of Gary's wrists. Gary was suspicious; he reckoned that the loop was so lose that he could slip his wrists free from it without much difficulty. He thought he'd leave any such attempt until later. You know what they say about "he who hesitates . . ."?

Francis proceeded. He brought the chain round Gary's waist and pulled it tight before Glenn released the padlock and slipped the hasp through another link of chain prior to snapping it shut once more leaving Gary's wrists clamped closely to his back. The chain went on its way, helped by the guy with the college boy haircut, up Gary's back, round in front of his neck and back down to his wrists. Now Glenn took a hand once more. He had a special padlock, one with a long hasp. Gary was soon to lose his chances of slipping his wrists free. Glenn snagged the chain as it descended and passed the hasp twice through the loop of chain round his postulant's wrists. As he closed the padlock, Gary became securely cuffed and scarcely able to move his wrists at all. There was lots of chain left.

---000---

All the while Gary was being made to resemble a young Ehrich Weiss, (except that I don't suppose that Harry Houdini usually bared his backside to his audiences) work proceeded on the other two postulants.

Paul was always a reticent character and, even though he knew that he had his brother completely at his mercy, he might have been reluctant to take full advantage of the fact. Fortunately, Ryan, in spite of his diminutive stature, had no such reservations - and he had several creative ideas. How could such a nice little kid be so evil at times? He even checked to see that Adam had gagged himself tightly enough. He had.

At that stage anyone less stoical or less determined would have told the little scruff-bag what he thought of him and drop-kicked him through the goalposts of life. However, Adam was bright enough to know that his compliments would be completely indecipherable and that the drop-kick could wait.

"Oi, Hiawatha, over 'ere." No, drop-kicking was too good for him; perhaps Adam would just drop his mum a hint about how that huge scratch appeared along the side of her new car. That should do it. Thus reconciled to a course of action, Adam walked over to where a selection of ropes had been neatly arrayed.

Paul selected a long rope which he folded in half. Ryan helped to hold the coils in position as Paul wrapped the doubled rope three times round his brother just about at the tops of his biceps. Once the bindings had been adjusted and knotted tightly against Adam's chest, Paul was at a bit of a loss as to how he should proceed. Ryan suggested passing the separate free ends either side of Adam's tackle and back up via his arse-crack to be tied off round the rope encircling his body. "Just so that he won't be able to slip it up over his shoulders". Adam wondered whether there wasn't something other than the damage to the car that would keep Ryan out of circulation for even longer.

Having had time to think, Paul turned down the suggestion; he didn't think it was fair all the while his postulant was wearing only that loin-cloth. Ryan's gnome-like face grimaced in mock disappointment. Paul asked him to hold onto the ropes about ten centimetres below his previous bindings and to anchor them against their subject's chest as he passed the fee ends round once more just below Adam's pecs. The ends were passed behind the section being anchored by Ryan, pulled tight and, once Ryan had released his hold, were returned and wrapped round the deep-chested blonde twice more. This time it didn't seem to Ryan that Paul had tied him tightly enough. But he did have an idea what they could do about it.

Once Paul had lifted one free end between his brother's right elbow and his torso and threaded it back above the bottom layer of binding, he could repeat the process once more before pulling the binding tight enough to satisfy Ryan as he did the same on Adam's left side. The two binders decided that, if they tied the two ends off in front of Adam, he wouldn't be able to reach the knots once they had bound his wrists behind him with a shorter rope. That would also leave them with a handy lead by which their postulant could be ‘assisted’ to get to where he would be needed.

As his wrists were being bound, Adam could see that Gary had been helped to sit against the barn wall with Francis's neckerchief bound round his eyes and the spare chain draped over his shoulders. Paul and his assistant continued with their task. "On your belly." Adam looked at his older brother and started to wonder why he had allowed the little wimp to treat him like this. Then he remembered. It was going to be worth it. NO one messed with a Brother.

Adam got down on the ground and rolled over trying with little success to preserve whatever little dignity remained to him. Ryan covered his arse for him. "Good boy, how did you know I was going to tell you to put your legs together? Try not to drool too much, now." and Ryan gave him a slap on the arse.

Paul remembered that it was a formal occasion. "Postulant Adam will raise his feet." Two size tens presented themselves for binding and Paul gave them the attention they warranted.

"What about this?" Ryan was holding a boot lace.

"Yes, why not? Go ahead." Ryan's delighted grin was out of Adam's sight as he bound his big toes elaborately together and threaded the unused ends of the rainbow-coloured lace onto the rope round his ankles. He pulled tight and asked Paul to hold his brother while he tied the lace between Adam's toes. Adam only hoped he wouldn't have to stand any time soon.

Ryan could resist no longer. "Tickly, tickly, tickly." there was no way the larger boy could avoid the assault.

Paul called things to order once more. "Postulant Adam will roll over." Adam was pleased that the tickle assault was so brief but wasn't as keen on being face up and unable to adjust his dress. "Knees apart." Adam did the best he could and Paul covered his brother up. "Knees together. Bring your feet towards your bum. That's enough." Adam followed instructions and Paul tied him above and below his knees but left some unused rope. "OK, straighten them again." Paul forced the free ends between Adams's legs. "The Postulant will turn over." Paul grabbed the loose rope that was poking out below his brother's knees, pulled tight and finished off with a reef knot with assistance from Ryan's thumb. The repeat, and almost completely redundant procedure above his knees completed Adam's bindings - until Ryan offered Paul his neckerchief. By now Adam really wished he had chosen tape instead of rope. The two tiers stood back, admired their work and gave high fives. Or at least as high as Ryan could reach.

"Over there?"

"Yeah. Come on." Ryan and Paul took one of Adam's arms each just below his armpits and dragged him over to where Gary had already been sitting for some time. They turned him over, sat him against the wall and made him decent, or at least as decent as possible in the circumstances and turned round to watch the end of Clive's immobilisation.

---000---

By the time Adam was in position, Clive had already had his hands balled into fists and two layers of tape completely shrouding his legs from ankle to just below his Swim-briefs. He'd needed the support from the two tallest Brothers for some time now whilst Stumpy took his time meticulously making sure here were no gaps in his work. Clive wondered whether he was such a good mate after all. Stumpy started a new roll of tape.

"Take your time. You know we need to make sure that tape stays in place right through the - - - erm - - - next event." There was then much sniggering as the Brethren realised that they'd got away without giving the game away.

By the time Stumpy had finished, Clive's arms had been wrapped from wrists to shoulders clamping them tightly to his body with a meticulously applied double layer of tape. Stumpy debated aloud with himself as to whether he was going to "lend this Postulant his neckerchief" eventually deciding that he'd rather be in full uniform all the while he had plenty of tape left. He didn't have quite so much left once he'd wrapped Clive's face from just above his chin well into his hair-line and back. As he was working, Big Brother couldn't resist announcing , "No more Mr. Nice Guy!" Stumpy blushed and said that nothing was too good for a friend.

Although Clive could hardly bend his legs, he would still be able to sit which was just as well because Jake quickly shouldered him and dumped him next to Adam.

The Brethren discussed the fairness or otherwise of treating each of the Postulants differently but eventually came down on the side of the "What's fairness got to do with it?" argument. Chris's voice called for order, "Alright you lot, shut up, the Postulants need to understand what they need to do next."

TBC

 

[blackbound]

That was a lengthy setup for whatever's next. Looking forward to it!

[Xtc]

I hope the wait will be worth it.

[Xtc]

 

TEN MEN IN A TUB (6)


Baptisms

"The P-postulants will pay attention." Chris had his Big Brother head on again. "All postulants have come through the preliminaries of their initiation so far but there will now be one more competition to decide which Postulant shall be baptised first." Being a Christian, Clive picked up on that word and began to have an idea what the final part of his initiation might involve. He hoped he was wrong.

"All three Postulants will be assisted to their feet and leaned against the wall. That will be fair on Postulant Clive who probably won't be able to stand up without help. Sorry, Postulant Gary, can't win 'em all." Even in his chains Gary would probably have found it relatively easy to stand compared to his fellow Postulants. The three bound lads were "assisted" to stand and backed up against the wall. Then they were turned around and their toes and noses positioned against the wooden boards. Stumpy, Paul and Francis held them in place with palms between their shoulder blades.

Jake had taken a handy tin mug and moved over to the opposite wall. "Brother Jake will indicate your target like this." Jake started to batter the wall with the unfortunate drinking vessel. "Thank you, Brother Jake." Once the noise had stopped, Chris continued, "First man to touch the opposite wall is the winner."

Stumpy made a plea on behalf of his victim and friend. He was obviously at a disadvantage to the others, being unable to flex his legs to any appreciable extent. Paul could of course have made a plea on behalf of his brother who was tied at more points than Gary. He COULD have, but it fell to Glenn to do so. Paul was disappointed. Following a chaotic "debate" it was decided to handicap the Postulants at the outset. Well, the Brothers thought it was fair.

The postulants had their handicaps explained, Adam's and Gary's blindfolds were checked and adjusted and the Postulants were prepared for the start. Paul released his brother, Stumpy turned Clive around to face in the correct direction and Gary was moved slightly away from the wall and spun around by Glenn and Francis who ensured that not only would he be disoriented but also that he didn't fall. As soon as Adam lost his support, Jake noticed Ryan's handiwork, "Oh, come on boys, that's not fair." The others agreed and Chris cut the bootlace freeing Adam's toes and allowing him to stand more easily while Paul supported him once more with that disgusted look on his face again. All contestants were now ready for the race.

"On the first sound of Brother Jake's signal the Postulants will start." Jake started hammering on the wall again and the race was on. Adam used his intelligence and squared himself off against the wall after having shuffled round, and then set out bunny hopping at a reasonable rate across the barn. Clive made a good start too but that's about as far as it went before the inevitable tumble. Gary took some time to face where he thought Jake's signal originated and then made good progress about half way across before the chain that adorned his shoulders came adrift as he tripped over the fallen Clive. Adam was the easy winner as he came into surprised contact with his target before turning his back on it and leaning against it trying to look under his blindfold. Paul helped him to sit; even he didn't want to see his brother trying to slide down the splintery timber. He then spread the blindfold out again.

Gary lay face down, trailing his chain and with his shins propped up on Clive's chest. Fortunately for all present, Gary's more extreme expressions of disgust were only barely discernible and Clive's rather milder ones not discernible at all. Gary raised his head and, looking under his blindfold, realised that he wasn't too far from where he needed to be. With the enchained boy still somewhat on top of him, Clive couldn't really resume until he had wriggled clear. Gary's muscular physique must have been an advantage as he contorted himself in all sorts of ways as he crawled along dragging the unravelling chain behind him and the chain itself being dragged across Clive's body was probably no assistance to the tape-swaddled boy at all.

So, the result was Adam first, Gary second and Clive, after having been assisted to the finishing wall, third. Just because he had lost, Clive still didn't appreciate why someone was wrapping something else round his still securely taped ankles while he sat there.

-----00000-----

The Brethren checked the Postulants over, not that it was easy to do that with Clive, and the absence of blood was taken as an encouraging sign. Big Brother decided that it was safe to carry on. "The Postulants will listen." I don't know why he said that, the poor kids didn't have much choice in the matter. "Having reached the end of their preliminary quests, the Postulants have earned the right to baptism into the Tie Up Brotherhood." He paused for effect. "If any Postulant wishes to withdraw, he must say so now. Postulant Adam do you wish to withdraw?" Adam didn't bother trying to say anything but shook his head slowly and emphatically. Big Brother announced the decision for the benefit of the other Postulants and moved on to the next. "Postulant G-gary, do you wish to withdraw?" Gary shook his head in a most animated fashioned and could just about be understood to be saying, "No" past his bit gag. There was no need for Chris to interpret that answer. "P-postulant Clive, do you wish to withdraw?" After all he had just been through there was no way he was quitting now and the topmost bundle of black tape made an almost mechanical shaking gesture accompanied by a totally useless attempt to be heard saying, "No".

"Very well, the Postulants will wait while the ceremonial paraphernalia is prepared." The Brothers went about their business leaving the blindfolded and apprehensive Postulants to imagine the worst.

-----00000-----

The Postulants were left sitting against the wall for far longer than it took to get things ready but the three boys eventually heard footsteps approaching. Adam noticed that they approached in an ominous silence. Adam and Gary felt their blindfolds being checked and adjusted once more and Chris made the announcement. "Brothers, are you ready to accept the Postulants before you into the Tie Up Brotherhood?" In spite of his slight stammer, Chris was good at the more theatrical declamations.

"Aye!" rang out from six voices. This was a practiced custom and, with all the Brothers having been through the ceremony themselves and with the longer established Brothers having put their juniors through it several times, it had taken a less chaotic and almost solemn character over the years.

"Postulant Adam, as the race winner, you have the choice of going first, second or third. Will you go first?" Adam nodded his head and, drooling generously down his chest, he tried to make a vocal affirmation of is choice. Whatever lay ahead of him, he wanted to get it over with. He even thought he would be untied as soon as his supposed suffering was over. How trusting.

"Postulant Gary, will you go second or third?"

Even with the bit gag in place, Gary could clearly be heard saying, "Hhe-cho'". That left Clive with no choice but to be the last to be baptised.

"Brother Glenn, we will go and prepare the altar. Please put the question to the first Postulant in two minutes time." There was the sound of several pairs of feet departing. A definite silence descended upon the barn.

-----00000-----

Without warning, Adam felt himself hauled to his feet. Glenn's voice was the only sound to be heard, "Postulant Adam, do you go willingly to your fate?" When the Brethren got this right, the ceremony took on a very spooky nature. Caught up in the atmosphere, Adam nodded solemnly but not without trepidation.

Glenn took in hand the ropes that were hanging from Adam's chest and Paul and Francis supported him one on each arm. As Glenn pulled on the rope, Adam started to bunny hop. Where he was going, he had no idea but he knew it can't have been far and that he certainly wasn't being led in a straight line.

Inside the barn, four ears strained to try to interpret what was happening. Other than a lot of grunting, presumably from Adam, and a few very terse phrases from various brothers, nothing was heard that could give Gary or Clive any clue at all towards what to expect.

"OK lay him down."

"OK?"

"Got him"

"Haul. - - Haul. - - Haul. . .

"Ready?"

"Gently now." There was then an uninterpretable outburst of sound that was certainly composed of muffled protests, something like sneezing and the word, "Up".

The snorting noises continued but the muffled protests faded as the words, "Easy.", "Careful." and "Help him up" could be heard.

Chris spoke in his most stentorian tones "Novice Adam Smith is now a Novice in the Tie Up Brotherhood. Hip, hip!" The chorus of "Hooray's" welcomed the new member. Adam was glad that someone had pulled that loincloth between his legs and pinned it to the back panel before they'd done that to him. His sodden blindfold was now hanging uselessly from his ears and nose and he realised that he'd noticed that equipment previously but had thought nothing of it. The shine was soon taken off his triumph over adversity when the neckerchief was fastened on again and he was led back to his place inside the barn.

---000---

"Postulant Gary, do you go willingly to your fate?" Gary, who, having been pulled to his feet, was expecting the question, gave his usual unequivocal confirmation and was supported by Francis and Ryan as Glenn led him round to the back of the barn by the chain.

The terse comments being made by the brothers now made perfect sense to Adam but Clive was little wiser as Gary faced his fate. He'd been taken to where a large plastic barrel had been used to collect run-off water from the roof of the barn. Above him was the restored hoist that was used to stow bales and sacks of grain in the loft when the barn was used for agricultural purposes. Of course, Gary couldn't see any of that.

"Careful." Gary was laid on the ground.

"Got him." The chain round Gary's ankles was slipped onto the hook from the hoist and Chris took up the slack.

"Easy." Gary's legs were raised from the ground and his body was supported as the chorus of, "Haul, - - haul, -. -. ." soon left his entire body clear of the ground. The Brothers who were supporting the supplicant let go of him. That hurt! The chain dug into the hanging boy's ankles and, even though Gary wanted to maintain his hard-man image, his squeal was quite gratifying to the Brethren.

More "Haul's" and Gary's head was soon level with that of Francis.

Gary had just about reconciled himself to the pain when the words "Gently now" preceded his being manoeuvred a bit to the side and lowered chest deep into the water butt. That was another nasty surprise. As Gary was lifted out of the water again, Clive could hear snorting and protesting only slightly more comprehensible than when Adam had met his fate. He still only had the vaguest of idea of what lay ahead for him. Was it too late to pull out? He could genuinely claim that he couldn't divulge the secret of the TUB christening ceremony.

Gary was acclaimed as a Novice and cheered heartily. He was then returned to sit between Adam and Clive, his blindfold was checked and properly secured again. He felt sorry for Adam when he thought of his being hung upside down wearing only that loincloth. He didn't realise that Jake had pinned the two parts of the humiliating garment together to help him preserve his modesty.

---000---

Attention turned to Clive. The nervous blond couldn't feel the water that was being spattered liberally across the tape binding him as Gary shook himself like a wet dog as he sat waiting. "Postulant Clive, do you go willingly to your fate?"

Glenn took "Mmmm" as affirmative; at least the Postulant wasn't shaking his head. The Brethren couldn't be bothered to allow Clive the time he would need to bunny hop to his ordeal, especially as it wasn't going to be as easy to grab hold of him to provide support. I suppose Stumpy should really have been the one to assist his friend but it made more sense if someone larger did the job. As Clive tottered waiting, Jake shouldered him and carried him round to the back of the barn.

Clive felt himself laid down on the ground and then someone grabbing whatever it was that had recently been fastened round his ankles which he could no longer lower. The usual terse remarks were exchanged and Clive was ceremoniously ducked. He was almost immediately raised from the water-butt and left wriggling like a worm on a hook for what seemed to him like more than the couple of seconds it took. Every time he snorted, he convulsed but he was soon laid down and the strap that had been tightened round his ankles was released freeing him from the hoist.

"OK?" Jake put a hand on Clive's shoulder so that he would know he was being addressed. Following a certain amount of heavy breathing, Clive nodded his head. If that was to be the end of the ordeal, he thought his suffering had been well worthwhile, even if it was only because those wankers that always gave him a hard time bout being a choir-boy would think twice about it in future. "Sure?" As his breathing eased and his nostrils cleared, the mummy's nodding became more enthusiastic.

Clive was lifted to his feet and the announcement was heard, "Postulant Clive Quinn is now a Novice in the Tie Up Brotherhood. Hip, hip!" . Stumpy's cheer was especially heartfelt.

"Right, let's get him back to the others." Jake bent his back once more and Clive was soon sitting next to Gary.

TBC

[Xtc]

TEN MEN IN A TUB (7)


Court Procedure

The shotgun blasts continued to approach but that didn't deter the Brethren; there was formal business to be transacted. Chris took the floor again. "Brothers, is it your desire that we free our Novices?" The affirmative cry finally brought some comfort to the Novices. Brothers, is it your desire that our Novices be allowed uniform?" The cry was more equivocal but it was eventually decided that the newcomers would be allowed their football shorts again - with underpants.

It took some time for Stumpy and Jake to free Clive from his bonds, Jake even suggested that they take him back to the water butt and dunk him until the tape came loose of its own volition. Clive was considerably relieved when his proposal was over-ruled but that disappointed noise showed Stumpy's mischievous side.

As the Novices were released and each took his turn to go to the well and clean himself up a bit, what passed for "packed lunches" were consumed. They should really have tried to get sponsorship form Messrs Nestlé, Mars and Coca-Cola.

It was time for Big Brother to move things on so Chris stood and announced, "Silence in court. HIs Honour Judge Stumpy presiding. Please be upstanding." He'd been watching too much bad American TV. All the established Brethren stood as, once they had cottoned on, did the Novices whilst Stumpy rose to his full, but not very impressive, height and walked grandly to a construction of straw bales at the end of the barn.

"Please be seated."

"Anyone having business with His Honour this morning should speak now or for ever hold his peace." Chris liked the grandiose ceremonies that the Brethren had evolved but they had certainly been drawn from a variety of sources.

There was always a Court. After all, it would be unjust to bind a Brother unless he was guilty of some misdemeanour, wouldn't it? "Who has occasioned the requirement for a forfeit?" Stumpy, whose turn it was to preside, was every bit as verbose as Chris. The Brethren looked round accusingly until Glenn and Ryan came to kneel in front of His Honour.

His Honour looked at Glenn. "Prisoner at the bar," I told you they drew from a variety of sources, "How do you plead to being the last to arrive?"

"Guilty, your Honour." It was always advisable to confess.

"Does anyone have anything to say in the prisoner's defence?"

Ryan spoke up pointing out that it was he who was, in fact, the last to arrive but the judge dismissed that as being merely a matter of fact and called for more pleas. Various Brothers agreed that, at the time, Glenn had been the last to arrive but thought that he had already acquitted himself with honour. Glenn, who still bore certain minor bruising, was glad of the support.

"Gentlemen of the Jury, do you find the prisoner guilty or not guilty?" It would not do to skip that formality and all the Brethren decided that Glenn was guilty.

Stumpy took the temperature of the gathered company and came to the correct decision. "This court finds the prisoner guilty as charged and, in the light of time spent being tortured already, grants an absolute discharge." What a fine judge!

Ryan's trial followed much the same lines and he was also discharged. There was a serious danger of the rest of the day being a bit of a waste of time. Unless . . .

"Anybody else having any business to bring before My Honour, speak now." This was the Brothers' opportunity to bring before the court anyone who was suspected of a misdemeanour or to trump up any charges that they thought might hold.

Chris put his hand on Gary's shoulder in an old fashioned 'you're nicked' posture. "Novice Gary, I arrest you for attempting to flex your muscles in order to prevent Brother Francis tying you efficiently." Following a rhythmic chorus of, "On - your - knees, on - your - knees . . ." a rather confused Novice knelt before the judge. Chris presented his evidence and the court spent no time finding the defendant guilty. That was one victim.

"Quite right," opined Brother Francis, "You deserved that." He spoke too soon as Glenn put his hand on his shoulder.

"Brother Francis, I arrest you for repeated attempts to deprive the Brethren of their rightful sleep." By the time the innocent looking guy had knelt before the judge, he knew his was a lot cause. Stumpy decided it would save time if he just found him guilty by acclamation. It wasn't the first time. So that was two victims who would require tying.

Being a fair system of justice, the next step was the appeals process. "Prisoner Worth, do you wish to appeal?"

"Oh, no." said Francis grinning and shaking his head. He was guilty and knew better than that. Spoilsport!

Thank God for Gary; he knew no better and tried pleading his case. In spite of being a newcomer and claiming to be in ignorance of what was expected of him, his appeal failed spectacularly.

-----00000-----

It was time for sentences. As he had expected, Francis was condemned to be gagged and 'tied to the stake at His Honour's Pleasure'. Gary was ignored while Francis stripped ready for punishment.

"Hold on those are your swimming trunks." Indeed, Francis had taken the precaution of donning his gold swim-briefs with the two broad white stripes on the sides.

"Oh, come on - Brothers - wasn't it obvious that I was going to be tried and found guilty of snoring? Can you blame me?" Indeed, the Brothers couldn't blame him and agreed to allow him not to have to change into his underpants. Francis grinned. Stumpy said that he could be punished for being improperly dressed afterwards. The prisoner's grin sank immediately and he decided to cut his losses and shut up.

There followed some discussion of which guilty party should be addressed first. Even Gary managed to predict that the term, "He's not ready yet," when applied to him was not exactly without its ominous overtones. "Just wrists and ankles while he's waiting," declared His Honour but, being the just arbiter that he was, he admitted Ryan's appeal to allow him to be blindfolded as well.

Once he had removed his red cotton shorts, leaving himself in just his white "jockey" briefs, Ryan and Glenn soon had the muscular, dark-skinned convict ready to be ignored for a while. His hands had been bound behind him and hitched up into the small of his back by the simple expedient of passing the rope that Ryan had used over his shoulders and knotting it off in front of his neck. In response to Gary's appeal Judge Stumpy ruled that it wasn't dangerous because: a, he wasn't going to be like that for long, b, there were plenty of Brothers to keep an eye on him and, c, as long as he held his hands as far up his back as he could, there was no danger in any case. He then reminded the appellant not to forget to remind him to sentence him for the unsuccessful appeal later. Gary was already learning about the pitfalls in the Brothers' system of justice.

Gary didn't bother appealing against the way that, once Glenn had cross-lashed his ankles, he continued to bind his thighs down to his forelegs using the rest of the rope. Shame really, because that wasn't what the judge had ordered and his appeal would probably have succeeded and Glenn would have found himself on trial. Ryan applied the finishing touch, blindfolding Gary with his neckerchief. Now he couldn't even enjoy watching Francis suffering.

The shotgun blasts continued to approach slowly.

-----00000-----

Francis was called over to the stake. That was one of several fir-trees that had been stripped of any side branches less than six feet from the ground. The manner of his bondage was routine for the Brethren; it was just question of whether the sturdy, but quite short lad was going to be standing or kneeling.

"Turn around, hands up." Big brother's instruction seemed to answer that. Chris went behind the "stake" and pulled his victim's hands towards him. His job was going to be to hold the prisoner's hands in place while Glenn rope-cuffed his wrists. The tree was too large to enable Francis to touch his fingers with his opposite hand but, once Glenn had finished, his still sparsely-haired armpits would be completely indefensible. Tying the cuffs was quite a protracted process that became more difficult towards the end as the cuffs tightened against the tree but Chris had been able to get out of the way long before that happened.

It's quite an ingenious tie really because Francis had the choice: stand up straight or try to slip his arms and their cuffs down the trunk of the tree until he could sit down. As an experienced member of the TUB Francis understood which of his courses of action was the wiser; he'd tried slipping downwards when he was a novice. Any prisoner that tried it soon found the trunk, as he slipped downwards, soon became too thick to allow any further progress leaving the unfortunate captive with his arms even more uncomfortably stretched and the choice of uncomfortable postures: he could either stand with his legs spread, stand with his knees bent or straight out in front of him or, the embarrassing option: try to stand up straight again.

Chris just took a short rope and wrapped it four times round Francis's left ankle and tied it off. Once the rope had been passed round behind the tree and the other end had been tied round the super-snorer's right ankle, he was left with his feet at least twelve inches apart. Glenn asked, "D'we really need to gag him?"

"Only if he drops off." laughed Chris. However, both boys knew that, once His Honour had sentenced the convict to be gagged, then he was to be gagged. Any other outcome would result in two more Brothers kneeling in front of Judge Stumpy. Francis opened up and Chris tied a bulky knot in his neckerchief and stuffed it into his mouth before his subject bowed his head to allow him to tie-off the none too efficient gag. The two tiers returned to enjoy Gary's punishment.

TBC

[blackbound]

Oh Gary. The only way to win is not to play, and even then you lose!

[Xtc]

It is a useful lesson for adult life.
I appreciate your frequent feedback. Thank you.
Last chapter coming up.

[Xtc]

TEN MEN IN A TUB (8)


Gary’s Fate

As Chris and Glenn came back to the barn, Gary was still in position in front of the judge. "Prisoner at the Bar," Gary tried to look through his blindfold, "When you were tried for your unjustified attempt to avoid being properly bound, you appealed on the unjustified grounds that you were a newcomer who was ignorant of our ways. How do you plead?" Really, that was unanswerable so His Honour just proclaimed a 'guilty' verdict and reserved to himself the right to find Gary guilty of contempt of court. Gary wished he had just pleaded guilty.

"In addition, you unjustly claimed that you were being restrained in a dangerous fashion. Such appeals are considered to be attempts to escape justice. How do you plead?"

"Guilty, Your Honour." Gary was learning fast.

It's a good job that Stumpy was an intelligent and articulate member of the TUB or several opportunities might have been lost. "On the first count of feloniously flexing (Stumpy didn't always find the right word, but he usually sounded impressive.) in order to avoid being adequately bound, you will be staked out and left to the mercy of the elements. Do you wish to appeal?"

Gary shook his head and, suddenly remembering what was likely to happen if he didn't reply, he answered, "No, Your Honour". He was taking no chances.

"I shall open it to the court to decide upon two punishments suitable for an unsuccessful appellant." There followed a somewhat disorderly and, as far as Gary was concerned, worrying debate. The decision was made to leave the first penalty to fate.

"Order in court." The 'jury' fell silent. "I shall impose a suspended sentence in respect of the second appeal. (Surely membership of the TUB would count towards the boys' citizenship education these days.) The defendant will be bound in exactly the way already determined but fate will decide the first extra penalty.

Certain items were laid out round the blindfolded felon; one in front of him, one to his left and another to his right while Paul and Jake slipped a small, doubled over groundsheet under him. After the initial surprise, Gary managed to suppress any reaction. Paul took one corner, Glenn another and Chris and Glenn took the remaining corners of the groundsheet and awaited instructions.

"Let fate take a hand!" On Stumpy's call the four boys on the corners started rotating the groundsheet, toppling Gary onto his side. "When the prisoner calls, 'Stop,' the ride will stop." Even in his confused state, Gary took that hint quite rapidly. The four 'turners' retired out of range before Ryan checked to see that Gary's blindfold was still effective. He adjusted it to his own satisfaction and His Honour issued his instructions. "The prisoner will attempt to crawl to a wall of the barn. He will NOT attempt to remove his blindfold."

Gary simply lay where he was as he took in his situation. Once he'd given it some thought, he realised that he should have appealed against having his legs doubled up and added Glenn's name to his newly inaugurated death list. The Brothers started chi-iking and Gary thought he would be wise to do as he was told although he could figure out no reason for why he was being made to do it.

His wriggling and writhing were certainly entertaining but, after a few minutes of dragging himself erratically across the floor of the barn, Judge Stumpy spoke. "The prisoner will stop." Gary did so. "Please raise the prisoner to his knees and let him see what fate has decreed."

Ryan slipped his neckerchief from Gary's eyes and re-tied it round his own neck. A puzzled Gary tried to gather his bearings and, as he looked around, he saw the loincloth that Adam had been wearing right next to him. For some reason, "his" jockstrap and his own red shorts also seemed to have been scattered round the barn. "Order in court!" Silence fell.

"Fate has decreed that Novice Gary Churn shall be staked out in a loincloth." Gary knelt open-mouthed looking at the humiliating garment. Adam really had a smirk on him. Once he had come to terms with his fate, Gary asked for permission to address the court.

"Oh goodie, he's going to appeal!"

"Silence in court."

"Your Honour, no, I know that I have to accept the court's decision but," the Brothers were waiting; surely the Novice was about to incriminate himself in some way, "Does that mean that, If I'd touched my shorts, I could have put them back on?"

"Yes, of course," Gary looked annoyed, "But you'd have no pants." Ryan was grinning. Glenn pointed out that, although it was obvious what would happen if Gary had "chosen" the jockstrap, he invited the prisoner to guess what he would have had to wear if he had headed into the gap where no garment lay. Gary's eyes widened before he heaved an enormous sigh of relief.

-----00000-----

"OK, Novice Gary, decision time: you can get yourself ready or you can chicken out, it's up to you." As Chris was speaking, he was untying Gary's arms while Glenn freed his legs. He was glad to be able to flex his legs once more.

Gary stood, gave himself a prolonged shake and bent down to collect the loin cloth which he then strapped round his waist and adjusted it, but not quite to his satisfaction before slipping out of his briefs. "OK. Do your worst."

The latest shotgun blasts seemed to be circling the barn as they continued to grow gradually nearer.

Gary was escorted to where the TUB had a permanent staking out area that could be guaranteed to be in the shade for most of the day. He had ropes attached at his wrists and ankles before he was allowed to sit and arrange his clothing as best he could. He was efficiently staked out but the Brethren couldn't possibly stretch him as tightly as they had his fellow sufferer. The next shotgun blast made everyone jump.

-----00000-----

The old aristo hove into sight and Rommel greeted his old friends. He also greeted some new ones. Francis's girly squeal was really quite spectacular. When the rotty put his paws up on Francis's shoulder, he was obviously pleased to see him. "Rommel, down! Dirty bugger. Bad dog."

Clive and Adam were introduced and he introduced himself to a considerably perturbed Gary. "Don't worry, at least he can't shag YOUR leg - not all the while you're lying like that." That was quite mild as the ancient landowner was renowned for his casual use of the worst possible expletives quite calmly but prolifically like most of his class. Rommel pushed his nose home as Gary made an attempt at a vertical take-off. "Don't worry, it just means he likes you. C'm eahh! Sit."

Chris asked Mr V. (actually Lord V. but he didn't like such formalities) what all the noise had been about. "Bloody American tree rats, fucking nuisance they are, they're not even proper squirrels." With that, a further report consigned another little woodland creature to that Great Pine Tree in the Sky. "Want some of this flaming vermin for your backwoods cooking or don't they teach you anything useful like that these days?" The next shot missed. The boys declined politely.

Rommel headed off to play with his new friend once more. Gary squealed. "Tell him to fuck off. Talk sternly to him." In spite of his surprise at hearing such language being spoken in such a cut-glass accent, Gary was prepared to try anything.

"Go away!"

"No, properly, be firm. Say what I told you to say . He understands that."

"R-rommel, fuck off!"

"There, you see, you just have to know how to talk to him." Rommel chased off into the wood to persecute some innocent denizen of the woodlands or the other but both Gary and Francis kept nervous eyes all around them.

"Oh well, must go, furry little fuckers won't shoot themselves. Used to get a tanner a time for a tail, you know. Behave yourselves, boys." I think it can be safely said that, as far as his Lordship was concerned: once met, never forgotten.

"Does he always swear like that?" Gary was amazed. Isn't it surprising how youngsters are always amazed when older people use the same language that they do?

"No, he's sometimes REALLY offensive."

"Oh well, now that Rommel's met you, you've got a friend for ever." Gary still wasn't convinced and he only wished he could see what was happening behind his head in case the dog returned with more friendly greetings from that direction.

-----00000-----

"Your Honour, is the court still in session?" Chris was being formal.

Stumpy indicated that he would hear any business as soon as he was installed on the official hay bale again. "Silence in court."

"Your Honour, I wish to make an appeal." At this everybody's ears pricked up. An appeal was so often just the precursor of a tie up opportunity. It was unusual, though, to appeal when there was no pressing case to do so. "Novice Gary should be released due to his having suffered far greater torments than he was sentenced to." A debate ensued and His Honour called for a vote. Surprisingly, the vote went in favour of releasing the Novice.

"What about the suspended sentence?"

"And the contempt of court?" Garry's newly kindled hopes dwindled

The Great Judge rose to his full, and still not very impressive, height on his throne and delivered his judgement. "The court is aware that Novice Gary still has to serve a suspended sentence that has yet to be decided and that he is also due to face trial for contempt of court. We are also aware that Brother Francis has to suffer a penalty for being improperly dressed. I don't think we need a trial for that." There was general assent for that statement. "Order, order in court. This court has decided that, if we tie up the guilty parties now, we might have no one to tie up at the next meeting." Viewed in that light, the Great Judge's verdict met with general approval.

-----00000-----

Gary was released and by now Francis was getting fed up with missing out on the action and managed to expel the inefficient gag and call out to his Brethren.

"That's another crime! Bring him before the judge."

"Oh, crap!" The Brethren decided that Brother Francis could pay both penalties (IF he's found guilty, of course) next time. Ryan re-applied his gag and the rest of the Brethren went about the business of tidying up before adjourning their meeting.

Things were more or less in order when Big Brother called the meeting of the TUB to order. Brother Francis was freed and the three novices and he were told to get into uniform. Francis even ensured that he replaced his swimming costume with underpants just in case anyone called him up for another uniform infringement. The Novices' uniforms were inspected to see that they conformed to requirements and even the fussiest Brother could find no fault. Indeed, Novice Clive felt rather embarrassed when Glenn pointed out that he looked like a demented French Scout which, indeed, he did. He'd got his mum to convert an old pair of tan coloured trousers into shorts for him and his mum's idea of what shorts should look like was somewhat extreme. Even for those day's Clive's shorts were short. It didn't help that, as well as being a choir-boy, Clive looked angelic in short trousers.

There was a lot of good-natured ragging of the Novices and many questions answered but all good things must come to an end and Chris chimed up. "Members of the Tie Up Brotherhood will come to order." He paused for Paul to stop talking as he was explaining something to his brother.

"Oops, sorry, Big Brother."

"That's perfectly alright, Brother Smith Senior. Don't forget to present yourself in front of the court next time will you?" Both Smith brothers grinned. Both grins carried different implications.

"Our meeting must have its formal ending. Here we go." All the Brethren stood. "My term as Big Brother runs out today and I hereby invite the next Brother on the list to take over the next meeting. Brother Glenn, do you accept?" The Big Brother Elect nodded his assent.

"My last act as Big Brother until it is my turn again is to call for the final promise." The final promise was always the same: an affirmation that, whatever had been done to a Brother in a meeting, it would not be held against the perpetrators outside the barn. In spite of their affirmations, Gary wondered if he couldn't make just a little exception for Glenn, and Adam was still considering mentioning that scratch to Ryan's mum.

THE END

[Gino]

WOW..., Great Story

[bondagefreak]

TEN MEN IN A TUB (3)

The procedure was all a bit of a mystery to the postulants because no-one had yet seen fit to explain the details of the task ahead of them but Ryan also went for a pair of socks. As a defaulter, he wasn't allowed a clean pair and had to use the ones he had worn to cycle to the Barn. They were a real boy's pair of socks: each one had a hole in it and they were far from clean. Ryan also laid out his belt and necker.

Hahaha! Real boy's socks...that bit made me chuckle.
Those hole-ridden stinkers definitely sound like something I can relate to

Still haven't lost your touch I see. Excellently written, just as we've come to expect from you.