(OOC: You are waiting for me, right? I took the risk of posting out of turns. If Vera want in before me, I'll delete this one.)

Pia was puzzled, to say the least. She did not fathom what Cala was asking forgivess for. Cala was the one that had been forced to go out on a limb and be terrified. Indeed, Pia had been expecting Cala to be angry with her.

Pia had been gazing at her feet, too ashamed to look Cala in the face. Now she dared to sneak a look at her. The look was enough to wring Pia's tender hearth like a wet sock. Cala, so alive and vibrant seemed now so lost and tiny. Her body seemed to quiver with fear, like she was freezing.
Pia had almost expected a slap. This hurt so much more.

Reacting instinctively, Pia briefly forgot that she was supposed to be shameful and feel sorry for herself. Almost. She reached out an uncertain hand and touched Cala's hand.
"Please.. please.. Don't say that."

Then she was not able to restrain herself. She opened her arms to hug Cala, to take her in her arms and protect her.. If she would let her, that is.

(all good, waiting on you...vera will post when she does just like I did with you and Vera. So its just the two of us for now)


Shame seemed to course through the very air about me swirling inwards to rub against my skin like a cold winter breeze down 5th avenue. Once more I shivered under the onslaught and pulled myself into the tighter ball as if my own body might shield me from the world.

A warm hand touched my shoulder. Love, caring, flowed down that single point of contact to war with my own tarnished state. The sobbing quieted…the tear stopped flowing. That great fear of being alone, of having to face the terrors of one’s life upon one’s own feet fled like shadows before the sun.

Words, quite and yet so powerful plied my ears and found a place to dwell. I knew that voice…I knew that touch even if it was so recent. Muscle by muscle I began to relax against the offering of home and hearth.

The warm blond body beckoned my cold dark self. For the first time I could move, could find the forgiveness of anther to open myself. Like a shell I creaked and cracked till the pain and shame of what I had done began to fall away and my arms wrapped themselves about the warm light of an angel.

I breathed in her sent and found it…and another … Vera’s. For a moment I hung in her arms as the shame crashed against me once more. But this time, yes this time a warm body responded by pulling me yet closer to chase away the despair.

“Pia…I’m sooo fucking sorry” It didn’t matter that I should not say it…I had to…again and again if necessary.

“Vera is right I’m….I’m just all wrong” the whispered words now between eh soft hiss of breath and termers of cold being pushed aside. Wrong or not I did not want her to go, selfish of me, but then Vera always did think I was selfish.

"N-no! No. You are not all wrong! Vera has no right to say that! It was she who did this.. and me I guess.. not you. Not you.."
Speaking was hard, her words felt like a big piece of porridge, thick with lumpy emotion.

There was something salty on her lips. Tasted like tears. She hated feeling Cala miserable like this, she so desperately wanted to soothe her pains, tell her everything was all right, make her happy, but she did not know how. She wanted Cala to forgive her as well, but she did not know how to ask. Instead, she just tightened the hug and let one hand stroke that that dark, thick hair again and again. At least the sobs seemed to be subsiding.

In one way, Pia felt like this was somehow a more intimate moment than their previous tryst. Sharing pleasure was one thing.. It had been great. It had been wonderful. Even now she thought so. And now they were sharing misery. There was so much she did not know about this woman. And yet they seemed to be getting tangled up in each other so very fast.

The resolve and its sincerity hit me as an emotional sledgehammer much like the words themselves. Delivered with overwhelming conviction that made me wonder if what I felt was real. Once more I could feel my world tilt and shudder, the ground uneven under my feet.

I clung closer, not wanting to wallow in misery, wanting to believe in the sincerity of the conviction of this angel of mercy. I felt closer still. Felt as if my heart beat in one with hers. It was as if a piece of me had been freely given away and in return I’d been given a piece of her to hold a cherish till my dying days.

Breathe shuddered in my lungs…then came out in a long whoosh that helped to relax me further. The hand at my back reassuring as it moved along my spine. Not sexual…no…just close and loving like the older sister I had never had. Yet closer still…a love…a lover. One willing to forgive me for the stupidity of my impulsive nature.

“You….you still care? Care about me? Don’t blame Vera, she is only trying to help me. But you…what would I do without you?” I didn’t want to know. Had no idea what I had done without her. Vera was my older sister. Pia, as I’d just discovered was much more. I knew it, could feel it to the very ends of my toes that curled in the water. The emotion was there hammering me to the rhythm of my heart beat…our heart beats. Love…joy, caring…concern…shame…all shared. All for the same reasons. I did not deserve her but she was here for me and that counted even more because of it.

I only wanted to be the same for her, selfish as that might seem at times.

"Of course I care! You mustn't think I don't care. I just.. just hope you care about me. Even just a little." Pia murmured. She let the other bit rest, unresponded to. She did blame Vera, but she also blamed herself. She just had to accept that Vera and Cala had some sort of complex relationship that she did not understand. She would try to figure it out later. Later.
Pia leaned forward and placed a light kiss on Cala's cheek. The salt of drying tears, the taste of skin, a little wetness from the pool, all mingled on her lips.

She pulled back a little, and looked at Cala.
"You're even pretty when you have cried.", she said, smiling a little, hoping to lighten the mood.
"As you can see, I just get puffy, bloodshot eyes."

Her face was so beautiful even with those blood shot eyes. Lifting my hand I wiped away the stain of tears upon her cheek. Right then and there I promised myself not to get into a pity party but rather enjoy the warmth echoed in her eyes to the very depth of her soul. I had to become stronger, if just for her.

“Not any more than you” Trying desperately to make a joke of it. The real joke was here we where naked and exposed as Vera swam her laps in the deep end of the pool as if she had not a care in the world. I suppose that once you took what you could from the people of the room you might not care a whit. Yet I knew from past experience that Vera was not quite the ice queen she put on. There was a warmth and compassion deep inside her, no doubt driven there by the very nature of the place we found ourselves in.

One thing she had proven to me was that Pia was who she was. There was no strange creature lurking just under the skin of the women waiting to take me by surprise. My heart beat a little faster with her close at hand, the bond growing a bit tighter much to my surprise.

I wanted to go get my suit…put it on and walk away from this place…to forget the terror of water for a day. I had to wonder if Vera would let me. I wanted to sit and talk with Pia…to learn more about her, and as my tummy quivered once more to feel her close and private like. To cry out much like Vera had only I cared…Vera…Vera was just using her for the moment to get to me I suspected. ,

Frankly it worked.

“I want to know all about you…later” I whispered in her ear and wrapped my fingers about hers with a quick gentle squeeze.

“lets get the suits and see what Vera has in store for us.” This worried me, though less than the water did. I never wanted to go in it again.

ia made a little half laugh at Cala's comment, a tiny blush on her cheeks. She did not feel particularly pretty, but she was till glad Cala had said so.

She wasn't so sure about leaving Vera. She cast a nervous glance at the pale beauty, now basking in the water, swimming with effortless elegance. How would she react?
"Y-y-you think we can do so?", she stammered. Her fingers tightened around Cala's a little, as if to steal a bit of reassurance.
She is so much gutsier than me! I could really use to learn some of that from her.

But why not? If Vera had not been mollified by now, she really never would be. Besides, now that Vera had let Pia satisfy her, would she turn them in for doing the same?
I hope not!
"OK! Let us go. I- I really want to go with you, away from this."

Action was the name of the game here. No waiting and wondering. If forgiveness was needed I might ask for it, but right now the tang of chlorine in the air was making me sick just thinking about what it had tasted like in the back of my tongue as my lungs filled with the tainted water. I had already determined that leaving this place and never returning was the right answer.

I gripped her fingers closer, felt the steady reassurance of them. No matter what had happened between Vera and her I would not blame this gentle blond girl. I might hate myself…might even harbor a grudge for Vera and her manipulations. But I could see how elegant they were….could see how much I might learn from her, perhaps, for all the wrong reasons.

Sex was long since removed from my mind as I pulled at the wet suit and worked it over my naked body. I wiggled…then giggled as I watched Pia for a moment. Watched as she folded herself into the tight school suit, all curves and grace, sexy in spite of herself. And then I remembered just how she had made me feel…how close I had been to here before Vera had come. No…right now I wanted to be held…reminded I was alive.

And maybe…just maybe the nymph basking in the water would be too enraptured to see us go.

“Shhhhhhh….” I grabbed a towel, wrapping it around me and handed another of the fluffy white rectangles to Pia. A wink…a Grin…and we would be off.

A soft sigh left Vera's lips as an eye peeked to see what the two students were up to. They were the only three in the pool and the sounds of them leaving the water was obvious. Even they somehow left the water without causing a ripple or sound, their wet footsteps easily echoed off the damp concrete floor. Give an inch, take a mile was the thought on the matter. It was truly impressive how foolish these two were. This act only revealed she was dealing with elementary level children and not mature college students.

With a stroke of her arms, the Head Girl slid to the edge of the pool. She watched their glistening bodies slide into their swimsuits. They were both beautiful, it was a pity they were both rather stupid. Vera could only wonder if they would pull such a stunt if the one administering this punishment was a teacher of a staff member. Such blatant lack of respect for her position was displeased her greatly.

"I believe I granted you a very specific request, Pia," she said cooly, "I do hope you can recite it before I must repeat myself. Then you will tell me what exactly you two are doing and why. For your sake, the reason better be good." Vera's voice never rose as she spoke but the threat was still there. She only allowed Pia to go to calm Cala down then assist her in floating in water. Completing that would have been enough for a woman with a phobia for water. It takes a very unique skill to ruin something so simple so easily.

A small bubble of giddy hope rose inside of Pia. Maybe Vera would let them go? She did not believe the head girl would simply miss them sneaking out, but she might decide to allow it. After all, she had asserted her dominance pretty thoroughly. Any points she wanted to prove should be proven by now.

And for the sake of all that is good and holy, I just gave her an orgasm! That should count for something!

Seeing the spirit return to Cala made her almost think the whole ordeal had been worth it. Pia positively beamed with delight as the other girl gave her that sweet, yet devilish grin. Gratefully, she accepted the towel..

And then Vera's voice popped that tiny bubble of hope. Turning slowly, she watched the cool, icy beauty by the edge of the pool. Pia's shoulders sank a few notches, the air all out of her. The hand holding the towel dropped down, nearly limp. Pia guessed she should be glad Vera addressed her. She suspected the head girl could be much crueler to Cala than to her. But Pia did not know if she had the energy for another confrontation.

"Eh. Uhm. I was going to make her float..", Pia said in answer to the first question, voice small, puny, eyes on the ground.
What is there to argue for, anyway? She won't let us go until she is finished anyway.
Still, she had to try to give an answer. For your sake, the reason better be good.

"..err.."
Pia was to tired, to wrung out to think fast. But then something glimmered inside her brain.
"..My wet suit.." Pia cast a glance at Cala, as if to seek reassurance. She then turned to Vera, speaking a bit faster now.
She did have a wet suit. She just had not had much opportunity to use it.
It is just a half suit, but..
"It increases buoyancy. Just enough to give her a boost. Something for her confidence.."
Pia paused a bit.
"Ideally, I would try again tomorrow. With the wet suit. If that is not acceptable, maybe we can try an inflatable raft now. Just for support, because Cala just isn't floating right now. I think they have some here, somewhere. Would that be OK for you, Cala? Would that be acceptable, miss Vera?"
Pia looked hopefully from one girl to the other. Her hurried speech might not be the height of eloquence, but she hoped she got her point across. If not.. well, than Pia was flat out of anything useful to say anyway.

Two steps. Maybe it was three when the voice echoed off the bare walls of the indoor pool and brought hope crashing down like the wingless creature I was. I froze, out of hope and felt the rising dread sweep over me like some huge ocean wave. Once more I could not breath, suffocating on the water that swirled about me.

Until her voice. Until she took up the call and answered out and I could once more feel the tingly warmth of her hand in mine. She argued for me…for me. I breathed a slow intake of tainted air that swirled inward and filled inflamed lungs. I did not want to get near the water…let alone in it.

“bathtub?” it was a request…I..I thought I could feel safe in the shallow water of the tub with its smooth sides nearby. What the others offered, it went right by me. Maybe it was my subconscious reaching out with an offer It new I could deal with. An offer that might be a reward in its own right as fingers closed in mine and reminded me of a time not so long ago when I had been deliriously happy and not living with the grim reaper breathing down my neck.

The same grim reaper who now lounged in the waters of death like a contented mermaid from hell. If there had been stones I would have picked them up and thrown them like papa said they did at Mecca during the pilgrimage.

Vera gazed at the two for several moments as if she was considering Pia's words. Cala's faint request did not even earn a look from the Head Girl. Smiling faintly she finally responds, "A good reason," she said softly, letting the hopeful words sink in before adding, "But the towel in your hand speaks more truthfully than you. If you intended to put on your suit to return to the water, there would be no reason to dry yourself off."

"Just when it seemed like you two were learning your lesson, you pull another stupid stunt. We were in agreement before you went to help Cala, Pia. That only leads me to believe this little plan to just leave belongs to her," she said with a voice as cold as ice, "And you caved in yet again to her wishes. You claim to love each other but you both seem to make incredible efforts to destroy one another. Help her float, a simple request and you would have been allowed to leave. I would have even made efforts to end these swimming lessons due to Cala's obvious phobia. But you seem to want to watch each other suffer more. Or perhaps you are looking down on my position and this school."

Her fingers fold before her as her elbows rest on the edge of the pool. It took much effort but Vera was far beyond displeased. She never intended to make this punishment last any longer but these two seem to make every effort to dig themselves deeper into the hole they are already in. Cala who was striving to be her prefect was dead to her now. If the stupid bitch wishes to be a slut, she will ensure to break the poor arab down into monster food in no time. Pia had potential and a future but the lack of spine to do what is right led to her downfall. The real world has no use for people who cannot act on their own will. The brat deserves a similar fate.

"Anything you wish to say for yourself?" she asked. They could blame her, call her a wicked witch for doing this. But if the two were too foolish to understand that their own actions led to this then they deserve to be grinded into the ground beneathe her heel.

Pia's mouth opened and closed a few times, as she tried to formulate a response. She could try to reason. Or beg. Or make excuses. But none of that would matter, she felt.
"..Or perhaps you are looking down on my position and this school."

The question would have made Pia laugh, had she been in the mood for such. Still, it wasn't a stupid question as such. Pia was tired, so very tired, and now she felt it in her bones. Not just tired of this situation, but of her last few months. Ever since she came to this accursed place..

Pia had been on the brink of declaring herself insane more than a few times. She probably would have, had she not known that she was not the only victim of the Shokushu weirdness. Mentally, she had had to tiptoe around her own memories to stop herself from screaming. Only her own inborn sense of optimism and naiveté, the conviction that things would one day be better, had kept her going. But only by a thin thread. Until Cala had proved that the world was a nice place again. And now, Pia realized that even that was squashed. For the first time since she had come here, she was actually truly abandoning hope.

Pia slumped down on the floor. She placed one hand on Cala's leg, seeking the warmth of the one person that brought her happiness in a hard, cruel world.
"Look down upon.. How can you even ask.."

"Yes. I do. Do you have any idea how much I loathe this place? How much time I have been looking for a way to get home? How I have fought, to even keep myself sane? I know what happens here, how they cover it up. That no one ever will help me. I won't even see home again, will I? Sooner or later, one of them will.. I will just disappear, I guess. I don't know how much they tell you when you are a head girl, but you got to have some clue. So pardon me all the way to fucking hell for choosing a minute of happiness above your precious rules. I know I am dead meat anyway, why don't you show some bloody consideration!"

She had started out in a low voice, gaining bitterness and venom as she went along. She did not know if her rant made any sense.
"Cala?", she turned to the other girl, sobbing now."I don't care what you need to do to get away from here, just, please, just get away from here the first chance you get. P-please?"

Even as I steeled my resolve to fight for her, to fight for us, to fight for my life I could feel the nagging sense of guilt and lose and dread. Perhaps it was the body sliding to the floor next to me. The way suddenly her arms clutched my leg and her whole body seemed to slump in defeat at my feet. Her legs against her chest, arms encircling them and me. As if I was an anchor in the rising storm to come.

I was not certain what Pia meant as she uttered the words. But I could feel her tremble. Feel the utter collapse of her esteem and worth. I could not let that happen. I could not let anything of the sort go on, not for someone that had shown me such love, such happiness in such a short time. Anger stirred me to action. Much as it had with my father. And was it not his fault I was here. Was it not he I should prove wrong and make pay. Pia did not deserve this. Not in any way.

I fumbled for something to say. Fumbled for an act that would be over the top, impetuous, reckless and oh so in character in order to sway the fear that gripped me in this room.

“You are soooo like my father” the words echoed as they burst from my lips dripping with sarcasm. “Fine then…let me be cast to the fires of hell if it will free this one of your tyranny. I hate the water…I hate this room…I hate is cause it scares the ever-loving piss out of me. You know the water you are swimming in a pissed in…pissed in while I drowned. Ohhhhhh……how I have tried. Fine…fine…fine…”

I wiggled out of my suit…found it hanging around my leg as Pia gripped me.

“Fine I will jump in the water again, just leave her out of it. I will do whatever you want…fuck me, drown me…see…nothing between us now Vera. I so want to have your position but I do not want to be like you, I do not want to be like my father. “

Carefully I pulled my leg from Pia, regretting that I might never see her again and strode towards the edge of the pool and my waiting doom with a full sway of hips, rolling them like I would have for any porn movie. I knew only how to sell my body, not my mind, and certainly not my impetuous personality. Perhaps Vera would find it enough, after all she had already raped Pia before my very eyes as my phobia held me captive. Never again…never ever again.

I could not run and leave her, not with Vera. It hurt to not be able to give her that, that one request.

The Head Girl sighed softly as she slowly pulled herself up out of the water. Water dripped lightly onto the tile and concrete as she moved closer. Vera walked past Cala without saying a word to her. She had dealt with the woman's games long enough and no longer had a care for her fate. But this other student had a bit more experience but her ranting made little sense in the end.

She reached out almost as if about to slap Pia but her hand stops short and gently caressed the blond woman's cheek. With a finger she lifted the woman's chin to her gaze. "You claim you do this for happiness but would you not be more happy if you two had waited to be in your room before embracing your love? You would still show your love to one another and you would have followed the rules and never had to deal with me. It is not my fault that you are on this island or that you suddenly decide you are too good to follow the rules here," she spoke calmly in a soft tone different from just a moment ago, "In case you have forgotten, I am a student in this school as well. Do not act all high and might because you had a few hardships, you have no idea what hardship is."

"Even if you returned home, there would be nothing for you there," she continued softly, "You cannot follow simple instructions and you lack the spine to even help your lover avoid trouble and allow yourself to be dragged down as well. You could not save Cala, you could not save yourself. Cala has nothing waiting for her but a life of spreading her thighs for another man. Despite what you think of this school, this is Cala's only chance to become anything besides a whore and this your chance to grow into something other than a submissive Yes worker."

"My punishments is to help you learn your mistakes and to avoid having someone above me take the matter in their own hands," she smiled softly, "You claim to love each other but you are too busy destroying yourselves to notice that simply following rules and directions would have been enough to let you two be on your way."

Sighing she turned and went to her bags. She pulled out the keys she used to lock the doors, showing how stupid their escape plan was. Vera was tired of this, she had no interest in helping students who desire only to throw themselves back into the hole she helped them out of. "I had enough of both of you. The staff can deal with you in whatever way they see fit. If anyone can make your lives a living hell, it would be them. Enjoy your last moments together. I do hope that minute of happiness was worth tearing you two apart forever. You both are pathetic and are nothing more than spoiled brats. Goodbye." With that she began moving to unlock the doors, only then will she return for her things and head for her room. These undescribable women ruined her mood for a swim, she will have the staff deal with them and hopefully a monster too.