You have been warned.
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Prolog
Toby lay on the floor, struggling against the ropes that held his hands in place behind his back. Jake showed him his back, boasting with raised arms in front of the crowd of students that had already gathered around the boys. “See? No newbie will dare to wear a long tie and a jacket as long as I am around! I hope everyone here is learning a lesson!”
Toby rolled his eyes. It was his first day at this school after moving here, and his new friends had already warned him. Being tied up was a regular punishment for disregarding the rules of the school, and the even stricter rules of the student council president.
After some more minutes of boasting, Jake turned around to insult his new victim. But his eyes bulged as Toby had already gotten up, the rope that once bound him rolled up in his right hand. “Dude, you suck at tying people up. And I don't think you are much of an authority here. No jacket and a bow tie, you are clearly just as much of a nobody as I am.”
The crowd cheered. It was obviously one of the more exciting fights that had happened in recent times already. Jake didn't react much, probably not used to the idea of anyone having the guts to fight him. People were usually more intimidated by his strength, so that they didn't even try to get out of his ropes. This was new ground for the bully.
The mood was broken up, as steps got louder and louder. Steps of authority and gravitas, leading all eyes in their direction, including the eyes of the opponents. The crowd split up.
A student appeared. He still looked quite young, probably not older than 17, but his look was as sharp as his perfectly fitted dark blue suit with the red tie. No one said anything, as he looked at Toby and Jake, while pushing his glasses up.
“Who are you? I've never seen you in my school before.” The voice was as cutting as expected, making the new student shiver a bit. “It's my first day. I'm Toby. And you are?” The crowd began to murmur. Toby wasn't sure if he did something wrong. Was he not supposed to ask questions himself? The newcomers mouth still was unmoved, not revealing a single thought.
“My name is Alexander, I am the president of the student council. Welcome to my school. You made quite and entrance, violating my dress code and getting into a fight with this...failure.” If eyes could have cut, Jakes head would have fallen off his shoulders. He started sweating, taking a step back. “I w-wanted to teach him, ah, that no one st-st-stands above your dress code rules, s-sssir”, the student stumbled, not being able to meet the look of Alexander.
The president ignored the stutter and turned back to Toby. “You are new, so I offer you a chance. Punish this person by tying him up, and I will overlook that you are wearing a jacket while also NOT wearing a bow tie today. ” This was a command. Clear and simple. Toby took some time to collect his thoughts. “With pleasure”, he answered.
Jake was still shocked, and incapable of properly defending himself. And unlike the first time, where he had surprised Toby, he had no unfair advantage to hide his lack of dexterity. It was easy for Toby to sidestep Jake and trip him up, as the bully ran towards him, incapable of thinking of an actual strategy. Toby moved swiftly onto the back of the bigger kid, grabbing his hands and using the rope to wrap them up. It was too fast for Jake to react, as he was still dizzy from the fall. And at this point, it was already over, as it was easy for Toby to add further loops and knots, making the binding soon strict and inescapable.
Jake began to struggles against his bonds, but he was helpless. Toby looked around, seeing the crowd being in awe. “Well done”, Alexander said, who made a small gesture towards a girl. She could have been his sister, with a equally sharp suit, identical tie and squared glasses. But unlike the president she smiled, in a way that was even more unsettling than the stoic, emotionless look.
She grabbed something out of her backpack, a bulky piece of cloth that looked pretty dirty. Students around her stepped back, holding their noses, and it soon became clear to Toby why. It stank horribly. No sweat, something undefinable, but certainly worse. A roll of silver duct tape and a second piece of cloth followed, equally disgusting as the first one.
“No, please don't! Please! Stop!”, Jake pleaded, trying to get up. But the girl moved swiftly, stopping the bound boy in the middle of a new plead as she stuffed one of the cloth pieces into his mouth. She was fast and efficient, gleefully giggling the whole time. “Tastes good, right? I did my best.”
Jake suddenly felt pity for his former opponent. This girl seemed to enjoy tormenting him way too much. She couldn't stop giggling and smiling, as she wrapped tape around her victims mouth, while ignoring the constantly increasing pleading. She took her sweet time, adding the second piece of cloth over the tape gag and nose before securing it with more tape.
The bound boy tried desperately to undo the rope that held his hands behind his back, but Toby knew there was no chance. He had too much experience to tie someone up so sloppily that they could get out on their own. Someone as inexperienced as Jake had no chance.
Finally, the girl grabbed the arm of her victim and lead him away. Everyone's eyes followed them to a near locker. It was opened, Jake soon imprisoned, and closed. It was still possible to hear his tortured screams, and Toby couldn't help but fixate on them. He felt sorry for the bully, the smell must be horrible.
“I expect you to respect my dress code, new kid. You are restricted to bow ties, for the moment, and you also have not earned the right to wear something over your shirt. You can earn the right for a more flexible dress code. But until than, you will show respect or be punished.” Alexander pushed his glasses up while turning around, not waiting for an answer.
The crowd slowly dispersed, with some students congratulating Toby. The new boy accepted this with light pleasure, but his thoughts were with Alexander and the scary girl. This was a challenge. He liked challenges. And, when he was finally alone, he started to grin. He would be scarier. His words would cut harder. This school would soon be his.
