 


 
 Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 ï>¿Maragana Girl by EC

   Chapter 17 ï¿½ The Brat on a Bicycle

   Criminal # 98945 finally returned to her normal routine as August drew
to a close.  She continued to deliver Victor's packages and messages, greet
customers at the music store, and deal with a backlog of issues affecting
Eloisa's band.  She continued to rehearse and sing.  She divided what
little free time she had between Sergekt, Eloisa, and the Dukovs.  Kim's
life was completely full, about as full as a person's life could be.

   Ironically, Kim's job with Victor Dukov became a refuge of sorts in her
life.  Her constant activities and social obligations might have worn on
her patience had it not been for the days she spent alone on her bicycle,
pedaling hard around Danube City.  Victor no longer had to exhort Kim to
ride fast to make her deliveries.  She was under so much pressure from the
other areas of her life that she vented her stress speeding along the quiet
streets of the nation's capitol.  She moved about so quickly that her boss
stopped nagging and berating her.  She became his favorite employee, held
up as an example of what Victor wanted from his riders.  That was not
entirely a good thing, because now he placed Kim in an uncomfortable
position because he constantly asked his other employees why couldnï¿½t
they deliver their messages as quickly as she was delivering hers.

   One afternoon Kim saw Victor berating Malka Chorno.  True to her word,
it was obvious Malka was quite used to being yelled at unfairly.  She
quietly stood at attention while Victor exhausted his long list of
complaints and criticisms.  Kim saw a huge irony in the situation, as Malka
stood straight, listening to the complaints of a small businessman.  In
spite of losing her uniform, and in spite of everything else that had
happened to her, Malka still looked and acted like a cop.

   ----------

   Kim's first night back at the Socrates Club was filled with celebration.
Every criminal in Danube City was jubilant over the double cancellations of
switchings; Dukov's two-month suspension of corporal punishments for their
help with the farms, and the added cancellation of one switching for each
criminal who participated in the fire-fighting effort.  The criminals had
undergone a harrowing six weeks of hard work and danger, but then returned
to Danube City to receive a respite from some of the harsher aspects of
their sentences.  The past hardships and current absence of pending
physical pain changed the criminals' outlooks on their lives.  Kim noticed
a difference in both the speeches and the music of the Club from the year
before.  The music, especially, became much more philosophical instead of
morose.

   Kim sat at her usual table, drinking Danubian beer and eating the usual
salted deep-fried vegetables with her friends.  It had been exactly one
year since Criminal # 98945 started coming to the Socrates Club.  Her
friends commented on the anniversary and on how different she was now from
whom she had been when she first came in.  Kim ordered another round of
beer and then stood up at her table.  She put her hand on Sergekt's
shoulder and smiled at him.  Then, in Danubian, she addressed her group:

   "A yearï¿½it's really hard to believe it's been a year since I've known
all of you.  In some ways it seems like it's been a lot longer, and in
other ways it seems like the last year went by in a flash.  Butï¿½your
friendshipï¿½it means more to me than I could ever express, even in my own
language." With that she raised her glass.  "Here's to this time next year,
to our freedom, and our continued friendship!"

   Everyone at the table enthusiastically raised their glasses.

   Later that night Kim and Sergekt went to an intimacy room for the first
time in nearly two months.  She was desperate for some good sex.  Once they
had the door closed it was Kim who took charge.  She pushed Sergekt on the
bed and grabbed his hands to pin him to the mattress.  For a very long time
she held him down as she passionately kissed him.  She could feel him
getting hard, so she began licking around the base of his penis and kissing
the tip.  As he got even harder he arched his back and ran his fingers
through her hair.  She got up and straddled him, grabbing his hands and
pushing them back down on the mattress.  Kim's gritted her teeth in an
intense passion as she lowered herself on him.  She guided his hands to her
breasts.  He massaged her nipples as she came, and then came again.  Two
months!  There was two months of sexual frustration pent up in Kim.

   The couple waited for a while, and then resumed their love-making, this
time in Sergekt's favorite position, with Kim on her elbows and knees, and
her bottom spread and high in the air.  Kim seductively moved her bottom
back and forth, as Sergekt remembered his girlfriend on her bicycle from
last fall.  That's right, he thought to himself, I'll owe her a nice hard
spanking if I ever catch her on that fancy American bicycle she's got.  As
he pushed hard into her and she groaned with pleasure, Kim didn't realize
her boyfriendï¿½s thoughts were on spanking her cute brown bottom.

   Kim briefly fell asleep on her stomach, as Sergekt gently ran his hand
over her bottom cheeks and his fingertips ventured into the darker area in
between.  As he studied his loverï¿½s bottom and lay recovering from his
exertions, Sergekt pondered the problem of how he could catch her while
bicycle riding in a place private enough where he could put her over his
lap.  The only solution would be to somehow find a shortcut where he could
secretly pass her and then surprise her by catching her from the other end.
Yes, he thought, there is one such spot on the way to my mother's garden
plot, a utility path that bypasses the main bicycle trail.  Sergekt gently
patted Kim's bottom, thinking about the attention that it was destined to
receive the next time they went bicycle riding.

   ----------

   Malka Chorno entered the Socrates Club for the first time at the end of
August.  She quietly asked the doorman whether or not she should wear her
policewoman's belt, given the club's rule about clothing of any kind was
very strict.  No, was the answer; that comes off.  Here you are a criminal,
just like the rest of us.  We're not worried about who you were before you
were sentenced.

   At the beginning Malka sat alone, given that she had no friends in the
club.  She watched several groups perform, and then Kim and Eloisa perform
together on stage with three of Eloisa's musicians.  As she watched Kim
perform, Malka had a chance to reflect on her misplaced loathing of the
American.  She felt bad about how she had treated Kim, but couldn't see how
that damage could be repaired.

   Malka was extremely lonely.  Because everyone in her former life had
turned their backs on her, Malka had been completely by herself since she
had been sentenced.  She felt she deserved what was happening to her, but
the pain of the betrayals by her former friends weighed on Malka
tremendously.

   Malka's isolation ended before Kim's singing was over.  One of Sergekt's
classmates, Tuko, noticed the ex-cop as she quietly sat by herself.  Tuko
had a girlfriend prior to the riot at his school, but her parents
prohibited her from seeing him after he was sentenced.  Tuko had not been
able to find anyone else to go out with, and had given up hope of having a
normal relationship until his sentence ended.  That was too bad, because of
all the members of the group, Tuko and Sergekt were the most adventurous
when it came to reaching out in their personal relationships.

   The disgraced ex-cop presented Tuko with an opportunity and a challenge.
He found her fascinating and wondered how approachable she would be.  She
was 7 years older than the members of Sergekt's group, but Tuko didn't care
about that.  She was pretty and tough looking, as well as somewhat mature,
precisely the kind of woman Tuko secretly fantasized about having in his
life.  Well, here was his chance.  Finally he walked over to Malka's table
and asked her to dance.

   Tuko's relationship with Malka took off very quickly.  Malka accepted
the first dance out of sheer boredom and loneliness.  At the beginning she
had real reservations dancing with a criminal almost a decade younger than
her.  However, Malka knew that the old rules and protocol in her life no
longer had any relevance.  She now was a criminal herself, and if this guy
was still in his teens, so what?

   While Sergekt and his classmates watched in dumbfounded silence, Tuko
bought some beer and fried vegetables for himself and Malka and sat with
her.  It was weird to see her smile and converse.  Kim and Eloisa could
tell that both Tuko and Malka were sexually aroused, something that became
very evident the next time Tuko invited her to dance.  Shortly afterwards
the Socrates Club's newest couple headed towards the stairwell door and
disappeared to go to an intimacy room.

   Sergekt and Dima looked at each other, a bit shocked at Tuko's departure
from their table and its result.  "Well, that was fast."

   The group now was faced with a dilemma.  It was customary that any
member who started dating someone from outside the group would bring his or
her partner to the table, and the person would become a de facto member of
the group.  That was what happened the year before to Kim when she started
dating Sergekt.  Malka, however, was much more of an outsider to the group
than Kim ever could have been.  Kim, although a foreigner, an English
speaker, a drug user, and Asian, at least was the same age as Sergekt and
his classmates, and like them, a recent high school graduate.  More
importantly, she never had been a police officer.  Kim had no past
associated with her, nothing to make anyone hate her before meeting her.

   An ex-police officer was different, especially one with Malka's
background.  The beatings Kim's friends had endured left them traumatized
and afraid of anyone in a blue uniform.  Until two months ago Malka Chorno
had been among the cruelest of the police officers, one of the worst
tormentors of criminals.  Now she was a criminal herself, precisely because
she had stepped over the line in her mistreatment of Criminal # 98945.  How
could she sit with the group?  And yetï¿½the group's subculture and their
friendship with Tuko demanded that any partner of his would become one of
them.

   Fortunately that night the group was not confronted with the issue,
because Tuko and Malka never re-emerged from the intimacy room.  The group
discussed how to handle the situation with Malka, should she continue to go
out with Tuko and he ended up bringing her to the table.  Finally Sergekt
stated:

   "Look.  Officer Chorno is really Kim's problem.  I think it is up to Kim
to decide how we should treat her.  As far as I'm concerned, whatever she
says is what we'll do, and there'll be no further discussion.  It's Kim's
choice."

   Kim was not pleased that Sergekt was dumping the problem in her lap,
because she felt she really had no choice.  She felt morally obligated to
come to terms with her former nemesis, but she really did not want to do so
by mixing Malka with her social life.  Nevertheless, Kim's conversation
with the old priest at the Temple gave her no alternative other than to
forgive Malka for what she had done.  Kim knew that Malka had repented and
even tried to apologizeï¿½sort ofï¿½ That meant she had to treat Malka like
she would treat any other fellow criminal.

   "Iï¿½supposeï¿½that we're all criminals, and now Malka is one of us. 
She's not a police officer anymoreï¿½or at least not until she gets her
badge back.  You're asking me what I want, but that's the wrong question,
because what I want doesn't matter.  You seeï¿½I don't have any choice. 
That priest obligated me to forgive Malka, and I'm going to have to, as
hard as it is, I'm going to have to.  Soï¿½when Tuko brings her, I'll just
deal with it."

   Eloisa gave the guys an angry look, and interjected "It's not fair to
put this decision on Kim."

   "Life's not fair, Eloisa.  I think you know that better than any of us
at this table.  It's not fair, but I have to forgive Malka.  So, when the
moment comes, she'll join us.  That's my decision."

   Tuko spent the next two Saturday nights sitting alone with Malka, as
both of them worked up the courage to re-join his group.  Finally, on the
fourth Saturday Tuko and Malka were together, Kim decided to approach them
and resolve the issue herself.

   "You might as well join us at our table.  You two look ridiculous
sitting here by yourselves, so come sit with us."

   Malka gave Kim a sad, but gratified look.  The invitation meant an end
to her isolation.  She sat quietly and was extremely reserved around the
others, but now she had her place at the Socrates Club.  Even when she was
not with Tuko, his friends would expect Malka to join them at their table.
It was the beginning of Malka's transformation, the simple act of sitting
at the same table with a group of fellow-criminals.

   ----------

   Sergekt's life changed radically at the beginning of September.  He
decided to reduce his hours at his restaurant and enter Danube City
University to study hydrology.  He knew right away what he wanted to do
with his degree.  He would seek to improve Upper Danubia's irrigation and
public water supply systems, to assure that severe droughts never again
could lead to a national disaster like the one the country recently had
endured.

   Sergekt had to seek permission from the sentencing judge to enter the
university.  Kim and Eloisa attended the hearing, as did Sergekt's mother
and aunt.  Sergekt knelt with his head on the floor while his Spokesman
presented the formal petition.  The judge then ordered Sergekt to kneel
upright and explain his plans.  Sergekt quickly summarized the experiences
he had endured over the summer.  He started by describing the collective
humiliation of the young men clustered around the pumps as they watched
their efforts to save their parents' gardens end in failure.  Right after
that came the mobilization to save part of the nation's commercial crops,
and finally the horrific week fighting forest fires.  He saw all that had
happened to Upper Danubia that year as unnecessary.

   "What distressed me, your honor, was that the water to meet our needs
was there, deep underground, but we had no way of getting to it.  The
technology to get that water also exists in the world, but in other
countries and thus is useless to the Duchy.  Now I know what I want to do,
and what path the Ancients have chosen for me.  I will try to become
educated to help solve our nation's water problems."

   The hearing was really a formality, since there was no doubt what
Sergekt wanted was perfectly reasonable and useful to the country.  He
would have to attend his first year of classes naked, of course, but there
was nothing unusual about that.  Plenty of convicted criminals studied at
the university, and there were even a couple of criminals with lengthy
sentences working as professors.

   Kim noticed Sergekt's confidence in himself rose as the semester
progressed.  He became concerned about his future and looked upon his
present as a temporary phase in his life.  Just a few months before Sergekt
had confided to Kim that he felt he would never be able to see himself as
anything other than a criminal.  Now, with the beginnings of his career as
a hydrologist crowding out other concerns in his life, Sergekt's entire
focus had changed.  He had found his purpose.

   ----------

   Cynthia Lee decided to visit her sister for the second time in the
middle of September.  Originally she had wanted to visit in August, but had
to delay her trip because of Kim's fire-fighting duties.  She re-scheduled
once it was obvious the fire danger had passed and there was no further
chance Kim might be mobilized to fight forest fires.

   As before, it was Spokesman Vladim Dukov who had to pick Cindy up from
the airport, given its location outside the Danube City collar zone. 
However, the whole tone of Cindy's trip would be different this time,
because the only reason she was visiting was to see how Kim was doing and
spend some time with her.  Kim requested a week off from both her jobs,
which freed her during the days to spend time with her sister.

   Because Cindy arrived before the equinox, Kim did not have her winter
cape yet.  She was naked when she greeted her sister at Dukov's office, and
would stay naked the entire time Cindy was with her.  This time Cindy
managed to get over the shock of her sister's constant nudity rather
quickly.  One thing that helped was seeing how accustomed Kim was to living
naked, to the point she no longer even noticed.  Her younger sister was
perfectly comfortable with her body, which made Cindy question, for the
first time, the values of a society that required people to be dressed at
all times, whether it was practical or not.

   Danube City was at its best during the late summer and early fall, so
Kim had the opportunity to show Cindy around and familiarize her with the
many monuments and historical sites the area had to offer.  She took her
guest to the Temple of the Ancients and King Vladik's Castle and explained
the historical significance of both locations.  Cindy marveled at Danube
City's beauty: its fancy old buildings, endless parks, and quiet streets.
Cindy thought to herself, this place has some real tourist potential, if
these people could ever figure out how to market themselves.

   Kim spent hours talking to Cindy about her life and what had happened to
her since last Spring.  She told Cindy the story of her final switching and
its results, and tried to make her understand the underlying values and
line of reasoning that determined how the whole affair was handled after
the offending officer was arrested and sentenced.  Kim eventually moved to
the topic of the entire Danubian judicial system and its emphasis on
corporal punishment instead of incarceration.  She shocked Cindy with the
following statement:

   "It's actually a pretty good system, even if it has its problems.  I
meanï¿½people really do have the chance to turn their lives around, and we
criminals have a chance to do something useful and get ready for our
futures.  Yes, I got my butt whipped three times, and it hurt worse than I
think you could imagine, but I'd take that over a jail cell anytime."

   Kim's conversation with Cindy moved on to Dukov's stalled judicial
reform pending in Parliament and what he hoped to achieve and change by
trying to re-write the 1780 punishment code.  The legislation had not gone
anywhere over the summer because of the constant emergencies afflicting
Upper Danubia.  Kim suspected the legislation would eventually be
forgotten, which was a real pity.  Cindy disagreed.

   "Kim, I don't think either you or Spokesman Dukov understand what an
opportunity you have.  You say there's a lot of good will towards criminals
because of the fire fighting.  Use it.  Have all those people you helped
call the Parliament and pressure theï¿½deputies?  Is that what they're
called?" Kim nodded.  "Alright, deputies.  Have people call up the deputies
and tell them this is how they can thank you for putting your butts on the
line in that forest fire.  Pass that reform."

   Kim thought about her sister's idea.  Cindy pressed her point.  "Look,
I've been taking some political science classes in college, so I have some
ideas.  What Spokesman Dukov needs to do is have his supporters lobby the
Parliament.  Have them call the deputies.  Have the firemen you helped call
the deputies.  Then have them hold demonstrations in Rika Chorna Province
and here in the capitol.  Make sure you get the press involved.  You do all
that, and you'll get that reform passed."

   "I don't think they do things that way around here."

   "Probably not.  That's why, the first time there is a real public
relations campaign to make some changes it'll be such a shock that it'll
shake things up.  I'd bet, maybe once the public gets used to nagging the
Parliament over things they want, things in this country might change and
the system won't be so stuffy."

   "Well, you ought to talk to Spokesman Dukov about itï¿½see what he
thinks."

   That night Cindy had dinner at Dukov's house.  She discussed her ideas
at length with Kim's Spokesman, who listened with interest.

   "You suggest what you call a 'public relations campaign'.  You will
understand public pressure is not the normal manner of conducting political
policy in our country, but I presume in this case, such a concept might
indeed prove successful.  You are correct about public sentiment.  At no
time in our country's history have people had such a favorable opinion of
criminals."

   During the weeks following Cindy's departure, that conversation would
put new life into Vladim Dukov's ambitions to reform Upper Danubia's
corporal punishment system.  Whenever he had any spare time, Dukov was on
the phone, talking to anyone who had been helped over the summer by Danube
City's criminals.  He called the religious leaders of Rika Chorna Province
and obtained their full backing for the reform.  On Sundays, in churches
throughout the province, priests exhorted their followers to contact
Parliament and pressure deputies to pass Dukov's reforms.  The nation's
fire chiefs told their firemen to support the reform, as did the Danubian
Forest Service and the Directorate of the Rika Chorna Reservoir.  Within
just a couple of weeks, Dukov found himself on national television giving a
joint press conference with the governor of Rika Chorna Province and the
Chief of the National Fire Department.  Together the three officials
exhorted the need for a judicial system that would protect criminals by
standardizing corporal punishments and enforcing limits on how a police
officer could treat a criminal during a court-ordered switching.  They had
the backing of a large segment of the population, while the opponents of
the reforms had to stay quiet or face the wrath of the people of Rika
Chorna Province.

   ----------

   Cindy was on-hand to watch Upper Danubia's bizarre "Day of the Dead"
ritual during her week in Upper Danubia.  She and Anyia followed Kim and
her friends to the plaza in front of the Temple of the Ancients the
afternoon before the march.  Kim's sister and the teenager stood among the
spectators as Kim and 2,600 other criminals had their bodies painted and
received torches.  As the sun set there was the usual mournful singing, the
ancient hymns begging the Saints/Ancients to get Upper Danubia through the
coming dark days of winter.  There was the usual sermon admonishing the
country for not having given proper respect to the past, and the usual
prayer hoping the dead might have a chance to return to life and ward off
evil through the living bodies of the marchers.

   Once the marchers began filing towards the river, Cindy followed Anyia
back to Dukov's house on Kim's bicycle.  Upon her arrival at his home,
Vladim gave Kim's sister a black robe and a long black shirt to put on
underneath.  Once she was changed Cindy then followed the Dukovs and
Vladikï¿½s future in-laws to a small local church for a service, then out
to the dark road where the marchers would be passing by.  She knelt with
the Dukovs, noting that her host and his son seemed lost in their prayers.
The whole affair still had a veneer of Christianity, but Cindy could see
how quickly Upper Danubia was returning to its Pagan roots.  Upper Danubia
was supposed to be a Christian country and still was very religious, but
not in a way that would be acceptable to most Western churches.

   After the marchers passed, Cindy accompanied the Dukovs to the Plaza of
the Ancients for the religious ceremonies to be held during the day while
the marchers were resting.  To Cindy the Day of the Dead was strange beyond
belief; leaving her with the feeling she somehow had jumped out of the 21st
Century and gone back several millennia in time.

   As she stood in a sea of painted bodies waiting to move out, Criminal #
98945 felt very agitated, almost scared.  Her dark eyes shifted back and
forth nervously and her heart raced as she wondered why on earth she
couldn't calm down.  Once she started moving along the river, the uneasy
feeling Kim briefly experienced towards the end of her march last year came
back early, and came back full force.  As much as she tried to concentrate
on simply moving forward, images flashed through her mind.  She saw Susan
lying dead in the morgue in Prague, as clearly as if she had been there
herself.  She could see Tiffany in an alley, brutally being beaten in a
drug deal gone bad.  She could see Malka Chorno's younger sister, dumped in
an unmarked grave on the outskirts of some Middle Eastern city.  She saw
the images of villagers in Rika Chorna province, dying in the forest fires
as they tried to save their livestock.  The visions became stranger and
stranger, as Kim's imagination moved into the past and into the future. 
She saw Vladim Dukov, slightly older than he was now, speaking from the
steps of the Parliament building to thousands of chanting supporters. 
However, the strangest image running through Kim's mind was seeing Tiffany
on trial in the Central Courthouse, in the prisoner's stance and tears
running down her face.  Was that the future?  Was the image something that
should have happened but didn't?

   The images vanished from Kim's mind in a flash, leaving her with the
shock of seeing the pre-dawn light and the other line of marchers
approaching from the opposite direction.  The entire night had passed
without Kim realizing it.  The marchers moved into the campground, ate, and
settled down on army cots.

   Kim lay down next to Sergekt but she couldn't get to sleep.  Finally she
walked out to the edge of the tents and saw a lone painted figure among the
trees, contemplating the quiet countryside.  It was Malka Chorno.  Kim
walked up to the woman and stood next to her, trying hard to control her
feelings of uneasiness and discomfort.  For a long time neither criminal
said anything, but both realized they would not be able to leave without
talking.  Anyhow, Kim had something she needed to tell Malka.

   "Malka, Iï¿½saw some things last night, during the march.  Weird stuff,
most of it not very pleasant."

   "That's why they have us do this, Kimberly Lee.  They send us out to let
the dead see the world though us."

   "Soï¿½do you believe in this whole thing, the march and all this about
the spirits?"

   "I don't know what to believe, Kimberly Lee.  I don't.  If you would
have asked me three months ago, I could have told you very clearly what I
thought about things, about life.  Not now.  I don't even know who I am, so
how can I answer that question, 'what do I believe?'"

   For a long time they stood silent, as Kim worked up her courage to tell
her companion about what she saw during the march.  She knew she had to
tell Malka; she wouldn't have had that vision and then run into her if it
were not absolutely necessary to share that image with her former nemesis.
Finally Kim spoke.

   "Iï¿½sawï¿½Iï¿½Malka, do you know whatever happened to your sister?"

   "My sister?  How do you know about my sister, Kimberly Lee?"

   "Vladik Dukov told me about you a couple of days before you punished me
in July.  I asked him, because I wanted to understandï¿½why you hated me so
much.  So he told me about the white slavery ring, and showed me some
newspaper articles.  According to the articles your sister got sent out of
Upper Danubia and your government never found her."

   "Yes, it is true that we weren't able to find my sister.  We found four
others and got them home, but we couldn't find her.  I imagine that's
because she didn't survive."

   "She didn't.  Last night, when I was walking, I saw a whole bunch of
stuff.  Among all that I saw what they did to herï¿½your sister, that is.
There was this grave, real shallow, out in the desert, near a dirt road and
some sheds.  That's where she ended up.  That's what I saw."

   Malka sadly nodded.  There was no arguing with the Maragana Girl.  She
and Kim would not have ended up standing together had the American's
destiny not been to relay the dreadful information.

   "At least I know the truth, Kimberly Lee.  Now the question is settled
in my own mind, and now I owe you yet another debt in life."

   "You don't owe me anything.  Nothing.  Justï¿½when you get your badge
backï¿½"

   Malka shook her head.

   "I'm not sure I want my badge back, Kimberly Lee.  Maybeï¿½maybe I want
to become someone else, do something else.  Leave the police work to
another person.  I don't know what I want right now."

   Kim sadly patted Malka on the shoulder.  She then left the former cop
standing alone as she re-entered the tent area to find Sergekt.  She looked
back to see Malka's white painted figure curled up in a kneeling position
on the ground.  The ex-police officer was sobbing quietly and pulling at
her hair.

   Kim was not sure whether she had done the right thing by sharing her
vision with Malka.  However, as in all other aspects of her personal
relationship with her former nemesis, Kim really felt she had no choice. 
She felt driven by forces she could not even begin to understand.

   ----------

   The march ended the following morning in the exact same way it ended the
year before, with the dead silence suddenly shattered by hundreds of church
bells and thousands of singing voices as the criminals marched down Danube
City's main street towards the Plaza of the Ancients.  The marchers heaved
their torches into a huge bonfire and made their way into the Danube River
to rinse off death and return to the world of the living.  Later in the
day, after the criminals were properly cleaned up, they lined up in front
of the Central Police Station to receive their winter boots and capes.

   The mood in the plaza contrasted with the cheerfulness during the
spring, when the criminals were turning in their capes.  For one thing, no
criminal looked forward to the onset of winter.  For another, the Day of
the Dead was a time in which every Danubian, and especially every criminal,
was called upon to contemplate the meaning of life and its brevity.  Many
of the criminals had experienced visions during their march that left them
spiritually shaken.

   Kim said goodbye to her friends and found her sister, who was waiting
with Anyia on the outskirts of the plaza.  Kim and Cindy chatted in
English, while Anyia flirted with a young criminal who looked like he was
still in high school.  Kim ignored what was going on with Dukov's teenager,
since she and the girl had an unspoken understanding that neither would
tell Vladim about anything the other was doing.  Kim instead concentrated
on telling Cindy about her strange experiences during the first night of
the march and her conversation with Malka Chorno.  Her thoughts went back
to Tiffany and the image of her former friend lying horribly beaten in a
dirty alley, somewhere in the US.

   Later that afternoon Kim got cleaned up to go to the Socrates Club with
her friends.  She felt bad about leaving Cindy alone with the Dukovs, but
the night after the Day of the Dead celebration was an important night for
criminals to get together.  Cindy shocked Kim with her reaction.

   "Kim, I got a question.  Could I see this famous Socrates Club of yours?
You've shown me everything else in your life, but I'd like to see that
club."

   "You can't."

   "Why not?  Didn't you tell me that former criminals could go as well? 
And also boyfriends and girlfriends?  If not everyone there is a criminal,
why can't I go?"

   "Well, you could go, but I'm sure you wouldn't want to.  They don't
allow clothes in there.  They're very strict about that rule, because they
want everyone to be equal as a criminal."

   "And if I don't wear my clothes, I can go?"

   "Uh...well...yeah, but I can't picture that you..."

   Cindy paused nervously.  She swallowed and continued: "I want to see it,
Kim.  I want to see what you do with your friends.  I want to see that part
of your life.  I'm willing to take off my clothes if they'll let me in."

   "Well, uh, OK...if you think you can handle it, you can come with us. 
I'd be glad to have you.  I'll get you a visitor's pass to get you through
the door and a bag to put your stuff in."

   That night Cindy Lee accompanied her sister, Sergekt, Eloisa, and about
10 other naked criminals to the door of the Socrates Club.  Cindy was the
only person in the group wearing any clothing, which made her feel very
uneasy while she was still on the street.  As they entered the Club's
reception area Kim handed Cindy a cloth bag.  Cindy took a deep breath,
sighed nervously, and started stripping.  Within a minute she was
completely naked, except for her jewelry.  Kim pointed out the jewelry had
to come off as well, since jewels were an indicator of social status and as
prohibited as clothing.  Once everything was off Cindy's body and in the
cloth bag, Kim signed a claim ticket and handed the bag to the club's
doorman.  With that, Kimï¿½s sister, now as naked as her companions,
entered the main area of the club and sat at the group's usual table.

   At first Cindy was horribly uneasy, being naked in public for the first
time in her life.  She was dumbstruck at the sight of hundreds of other
naked bodies, male and female, mostly young but a few middle-aged patrons
as well.  However, within a few minutes the visitor got used to her strange
situation.  In the end she felt more comfortable without her clothing than
she would have had she kept her clothes on.  There was not a single dressed
person in a room full of about 350 patrons and staff.  Cindy's body drew
some attention because of her tan-lines from wearing a swimsuit in the US,
but she was well received by Danubian criminals eager to meet her and try
out their English.  Sergekt helped break the ice by asking Cindy to dance.
Once they saw Kim's sister on the dance floor with one of their companions,
other male criminals eagerly sought her out for dances and conversation. 
By the end of the evening Cindy was fully accepted as a client of the Club,
in spite of her strange tan-marks and lack of a collar.  It was obvious
several patrons were attracted to Kimberly Leeï¿½s sister, something that
deeply flattered her.

   Cindy went home two days after her debut at the Socrates Club.  As Kim
stood at the final trolley stop within the Danube City collar-zone to say
goodbye, Cindy promised: "I'll be back at the end of next June.  I want to
watch that ceremony when you get your collar off."

   "What about Mom and Dad?  Do you think you can get them to come?"

   "I don't know.  But I'll be here, whether they come or not."

   Cindy Lee had deeply enjoyed herself on this trip, especially towards
the end.  Kim could tell that her sister's second trip to Upper Danubia had
changed her outlook considerably and broadened her vision of what was
possible in life.  She hugged Cindy goodbye and watched her depart with
Vladim Dukov on the next trolley headed to the airport.

   ----------

   The weekend after Cindy's departure Sergekt hatched his plot to catch
Kim on her bicycle and give her a sound spanking.  The day was perfect for
such an outing, still plenty warm for a late September afternoon.  The two
criminals rode the bike-lane that paralleled the Danube River, and then
turned inland to go to his mother's garden.  Sergekt suggested a new route,
which Kim readily agreed to explore.

   Kim was in a very naughty mood.  She shamelessly teased her boyfriend by
lifting up in her bicycle seat and stretching her bottom seductively as she
pedaled her fancy mountain bike.  She then raced ahead, leaving him gasping
for breath as he tried to catch up on his more primitive Danubian model. 
When Kim noticed that Sergekt seemed not to be trying so hard to catch her,
she teased him all that much more.  As he came close to catching up, she
darted ahead; passing a small dirt side trail that did not catch her
attention.  Kim rode so fast that she didn't notice Sergekt no longer was
behind her.  She sped around a long curve that overlooked a forest-park,
and finally noticed he was not in sight.  Kim shrugged her shoulders,
thinking she must have really outpaced him this time, and casually rode
down the trail at a leisurely pace.  She rounded another corner that was
obscured by trees.  Her heart stopped when she saw Sergekt standing in the
middle of the trail, his arms crossed and his bicycle blocking the path. 
So...he had out-witted her.  Now she was caught, and would have to pay with
a sore bottom.

   Kim's heart raced and she was wet between her legs.  She was totally
aroused; thrilled that he had been able to catch her after-all.  He would
punish her bratty behavior with a long, slow, sensuous spanking.  Then,
once Kim's emotions were fully aroused, the best part would come, the
release through passionate lovemaking.

   Sergekt grabbed Kim's hand, lovingly but firmly.  She had been teasing
him every time they had gone bicycle riding, making fun of his inferior
bike.  Now she was outwitted and caught.  He kissed her, but then patted
her bottom with a warning tap, letting her know what was coming.  Kim
nodded.  "You got me.  I guess my bottom is going to pay for my impudence?"

   "That's right Kim.  Park your fancy bike next to mine near that tree."

   Kim complied, moving her bike off the path.  Sergekt then took her hand
and led her a few meters away from the main path up the shortcut.  There
was a park bench hidden in the bushes.  Sergekt sat down and pulled Kim
over his lap.  For a long time she lay quietly as he gently caressed the
flawless brown skin of her small shapely bottom.  Sergekt lovingly patted
Kim's bottom cheeks, but with a firm warning to comply with his next
instruction.

   "Spread you legs a little and lift your bottom up."

   Kim obeyed, feeling the cool autumn breeze caress her exposed
bottom-hole and vagina.  The combined physical sensations and the tension
of the impending spanking drove Kim wild with anticipation.

   "Kim, you're 20 in a couple of weeks.  That means a birthday spanking.
But since you were so naughty to me on your bicycle, that will be a
complete birthday spanking on each side of your bottom, plus another for
your whole bottom.  How many birthday spankings is that?"

   "Three.  Three good hard spankings on my poor bottom!  I guess I really
have been naughty, to deserve three whole birthday spankings!"

   "That's right.  Maybe you'll think twice about waving your cute behind
at me when you're speeding on that fancy bicycle of yours."

   "Hmm.  Maybe, but I doubt it." With that Kim wiggled her bottom
slightly.

   Sergekt rested his hand on his partnerï¿½s right bottom-cheek.  He
lifted his hand up and delivered a slap, one that wasn't all that hard. 
The feeling was just right.  He slapped again on the other side.  Slowly he
spanked, alternating between Kim's bottom cheeks and gradually increasing
the severity of the swats.

   Kim's bottom was only slightly reddened at the end of her first birthday
spanking.  She felt a warm comfortable sting coming from her rear-end, and
an extreme arousal radiating from between her legs.  Sergekt knew her, and
knew what she needed.  The spanking would move from playful to sensuous to
severe.  Sergekt had allowed himself 60 slaps to build up Kim's arousal,
although if he felt she needed more, he was ready to sentence her to yet
another birthday spanking.

   SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½

   The spanking grew louder and louder as Sergekt picked up the force of
his slaps in the second part of Kim's punishment.  She gasped and moaned,
as the increasing heat in her bottom transformed itself into increasing
arousal.  Kim was so excited that Sergekt could smell her, even in the open
area with the breeze blowing around them.  She bit her lip as tears and
sweat ran down her face.

   Kim released control of her body to Sergekt.  As he slapped harder and
harder, he carefully gauged the effect his swats were having on his
girlfriend.  He took her to a level of pleasure she never before had
experienced, through the sharp physical sensation of her punished bottom.
Kim trusted him fully and surrendered completely.  Kim was so aroused she
was almost tormented, but she wanted to feel that torment, that wild mix of
moderate pain and extreme pleasure.

   At the end of the 40th slap Sergekt gently massaged Kim's swelling
bottom, which by now was quite red.  Kim groaned with pleasure, as she felt
Sergekt's hand rubbing her bottom through the sting of her spanked skin. 
He slipped his hand between her legs, but tease and torment her, not to
give her any relief.  Kim would have to wait until the 60th swat before she
could expect any release of her sexual tension.

   Sergekt rested his hand on Kim's bottom for a few seconds.  "Happy
Birthday, Kim."

   SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½ SLAP!ï¿½

   Sergekt struck quite hard for the final part of Kim's spanking.  There
was much more of an element of punishment in the final set of slaps than
there had been during the first two sets.  By now Kim was experiencing some
serious pain, but psychologically she was ready, and pain was what she
wanted.  As the tears flowed down her face, Kim felt the emotional release
she so desperately needed.  However, as Sergekt came to the end of the
third set, he delivered the final several swats more gently, allowing Kim
to wind down a bit before the spanking actually ended.  He began rubbing
and massaging Kim more and more, and finally slipped his hand between her
legs again.  Kim closed her eyes and concentrated on the intense sensations
coming from her bottom and her clitoris.  Somehow the pain from her bottom
and the gentle teasing of Sergekt's fingertips on the most intimate part of
her body went together, along with the gentle rustling of the leaves in the
forest and the cool breeze blowing against her body, to give Kim a
sensation of sexual and physical bliss.

   Sergekt kissed Kim's bottom.  He leaned over and kissed her shoulders.
Finally he motioned her to get up.  He took her hand and guided her behind
the bench.  He had Kim bend over the back of the bench, placing her hands
on the seat.  Kim spread her legs and arched her back, completely exposing
herself to her lover; putting her red bottom and wet vagina on full
display. Kim wanted to surrender herself completely, to let Sergekt do what
he wanted with her body.  She wanted him to take her.

   Sergekt entered Kim.  He thrust hard, grabbing her breasts with his
hands.  He squeezed her nipples hard between his fingers as he massaged
Kim's chest.  Kim groaned and thrust her head back, as she pressed her
bottom backward to get him even further inside her.  He thrust hard, with
force.  The thrusts bordered on painful, but they were enough to give Kim
deep satisfaction as her lover pressed into her.  Kim climaxed and almost
blacked out, it felt so good.  Sweat poured down Sergekt's body as he
pushed into Kim's body over and over.  He held back with his orgasm as long
as he could, wanting to relish the feel of Kim's body and the sight of her
sweaty back and reddened bottom.  Finally he was forced to release into
her, as she groaned and climaxed yet again.

   Sergekt pulled out of Kim, but she was so exhausted she remained bent
over the back of the bench.  He fought to regain his breath as he admired
his lover's body.  Finally he drew her to him and sat with her on the
bench. She cuddled in his arms, although she moved a bit from the
discomfort of sitting on her still sore bottom.

   Sergekt felt deeply satisfied with life at that moment as he looked down
at his lover.  Kim's heart belonged to him.  She was his, the woman with
whom he would share his life.  He was totally satisfied with her.  Kim was
a partner with whom he could play and share his sexual fantasies.

   Kim looked up at Sergekt with a very naughty expression.

   "I'm still going to tease you on my bike, and don't think you're going
to catch me here again.  So I think my bottom will be pretty safe for a
while."

   "We'll see.  Of course when I do finally catch you again you'll get a
nice rough spanking.  We'll have all afternoon."

   "Well, you have to catch me first, and I don't see how that's going to
happen."

   Sergekt patted his lover's bottom.  "That sounds like a challenge to me,
and I always am up for a good challenge.  Your bottom will pay for your
impudence, Kim."

   Kim pinched Sergekt's chest hard and smiled mischievously.  "I still
have the faster bike, so don't get your hopes up."

   Of course, they both knew that someday Sergekt would figure out how to
catch Kim again.  Once he did, she would end up with another sore bottom.
Kim wanted that more than anything, but she had no intention of making it
easy for Sergekt.  After all, she was quite a brat.



   Chapter 18 ï¿½ Paths towards the Future

   Malka Chorno's final integration into the criminal community came much
more quickly than anyone could have anticipated and from a completely
unexpected source, the owner of the Socrates Club.  As he watched Malka and
admired her muscular cop's physique, an idea popped into his head.  He
decided to approach the former police officer about becoming a physical
fitness instructor for the Club.

   The Club's owner had heard predictions that winter would come early,
which would force Danube City's criminals off the streets and seek refuge
indoors.  Many of them would lose any opportunity whatsoever to exercise,
since no gym in Danube City admitted criminals as members.  The Socrates
Club's owner realized he easily could fill that need, since part of the
Club's sprawling property included an empty armory.  The building was a 300
year-old historical landmark and thus could not be torn down or renovated
on the outside.  The structure had sat empty for years, but now the
Socrates Club could, with the simple installation of a heater and a new
floor, convert it into a fitness center.  The only element lacking was a
criminal who knew how to conduct physical fitness training.  That problem
now was resolved with the addition of an ex-police officer to the club's
clientele.

   In the middle of September the Club owner called Vladim Dukov to relay
his plan to offer a job to Malka.  The former cop took a break from Victor
Dukov's deliveries to see about the new position.  The Club owner took her
into the armory and discussed his idea.

   "What I want is for the physical fitness program to be included in the
Club's dues and room fees.  It won't be a separate charge, because I know
most of my clients couldn't afford a health club fee.  But I think they'll
come exercise if it doesn't cost them anything extra, and if they have a
charismatic instructor.  It won't cost me that much, since all I need to do
is put in a floor and a heater, in a building I really can't use for
anything else.  If you agree to do this, what you do is up to you, as long
as it's general fitness.  It's your chance to stop being yelled at by that
bicycle guy.  You'll get to yell instead."

   Malka quickly accepted the offer.  She had plenty of time to give notice
to Victor Dukov, since she still had to wait for the installation of the
new floor.  She also took advantage of the time to read over her old police
training manuals and set up several exercise regimes for different tastes.
She decided to set up two classes of general military exercises and one
class of non-combative martial arts.  Malka would lead the classes by
exercising herself as she shouted commands.  She would lead by example,
showing her classes what she wanted with her own body.

   The gym was ready at the end of September, just as the weather was
becoming too cold for Kim and Malka to continue delivering messages for
Victor.  The first Saturday night of October Malka stood on the stage of
the Socrates Club for the only time during her sentence to announce her
exercise classes and her schedule.  She concluded:

   "I have taken the entire exercise program for the National Police
Academy and adapted it for you.  I will work with you in the same way my
instructors worked with my class at the Academy.  That means, don't expect
me to be nice, because 'nice' is not how you get your body into proper
shape.  But I can guarantee my regimen will keep you fit and in better
health.  This is the chance for you not to become a bunch of fat slobs over
the winter."

   With that, Malka began her classes.  Three times per day, six days per
week, Malka's snarling voice could be heard on the street outside the old
armory.  Malka's classes started out full, but at the beginning many
criminals came and left.  By the end of the year the exercise groups had
stabilized with a regular crowd.  For the ones who stayed, Malka became
something of a cult figure, the ill-tempered ex-police officer who now
dedicated her life to helping anyone who cared to spend time with her get
into top physical shape.  Kim and Eloisa attended Malka's late afternoon
sessions three times per week and always left completely exhausted.  They
jokingly referred to the armory as "Malka's torture chamber"

   Malka became a totally different person when she was instructing her
classes from any other time during her sentence as a criminal.  Malka was
very quiet and almost shy when she was among Tuko's friends, or with Victor
Dukov, or with her Spokesman.  The exercise sessions gave Malka the chance
to be her old self again.  In her classes she was boss, period.  She had a
clear idea what she wanted from her students and very quickly snapped at
the ones not performing to her expectations.  She pushed her classes
mercilessly, but she led by example, exercising in front of her students
during the sessions.  As she shouted commands, Malka's sharp eyes scanned
her group for anyone using poor technique.  She didn't interrupt her class
for errant students, but after class she worked one-on-one with anyone she
noticed who was having problems doing the exercises properly.  Malka's own
body was in constant physical movement, pushed by the woman's incredible
drive and determination.

   The ex-cop managed to settle into her life as a criminal largely because
of her unusual relationship with her young boyfriend Tuko.  Malka came from
a very strict and upright family of small farmers.  Prior to her arrest she
had dated the same man for years in the traditional manner.  In every sense
Malka had been a hard-core traditionalist, only to have her world
disintegrate during the days following Kim's final switching.  Malka
realized the loss of her old life was not all bad, because now she could do
something she couldn't have done in the past, simply live life for herself
and enjoy the moment.  She did not need to follow any formal protocol with
Tuko.  She could joke with him and touch him where she pleased.  At a
moment's notice the two could run upstairs to an intimacy room.  They could
experiment with different sexual positions and wrestle, something Malka
would not have dreamt of doing with her old fiancï¿½e.

   When it came to sex, Tuko and Malka were evenly matched.  Both had very
strong sexual urges and pent-up erotic desires.  Tuko had a stronger drive
and physical endurance than anyone Malka had ever slept with previously. 
For the first time in her life Malka had a man who could keep up with her
craving for sexual gratification.  Very quickly Tuko learned to be rough
with Malka, because that was what she wanted.  During sex he pushed hard
when he entered her, grabbed her hair when he kissed her, and slapped her
bottom hard when he wanted to position her for a new sexual posture.  Malka
was every bit as rough with Tuko.  She dug her fingernails into his back or
bottom during intercourse, frequently bit him, and grabbed his penis and
squeezed it, looking at him with clinched teeth and flashing eyes, warning
him he'd better become erect quickly...or else.  There were plenty of
evenings that Malka and Tuko returned to the Club's main floor after sex
with their bodies all marked up from their exertions.  The other members of
the group tried not to notice.

   ----------

   Dukov's teenaged daughter returned home one mid September afternoon with
a bit of a surprise, a classmate from the United States.  The girl's name
was Jennifer Thompson and she was a high school exchange student spending a
year abroad in Upper Danubia.  Jennifer was living with a host family, who
had sent their own daughter to live with Jennifer's parents in the US.

   Jennifer was petite and quite pretty, with pale skin and short red hair.
In the US had enjoyed sports and cheerleading.  She freely admitted that
the cheerleading had gotten her into a lot of trouble, as she ran wild with
fellow cheerleaders and football players.  Like Kim, in her high school
Jennifer had been quite the party girl, which was why her parents decided
to send her for a year abroad.

   Jennifer was elated about going to Europe, where she had heard that
societies were more liberal than even California, which was where she was
from.  She had not heard of Upper Danubia, but hey, Europe was Europe, so
she expected to have a blast.  No drinking age, lax drug laws, tattoos,
ravesï¿½what more could a 17-year-old want?

   Jennifer's father had sent her to Upper Danubia knowing full-well what
lay in store for his daughter.  Yes, his little Jennifer would have a bit
of a shock awaiting her when she started her high school in Danube City. 
Among the papers he signed was a release allowing Jennifer to receive
corporal punishment while in school, if it proved necessary.  Jennifer's
parents gladly signed the release, and with that Jennifer was on her way to
the airport.

   Jennifer was somewhat taken aback by the conservative appearance of
Danube City and its busy, but very quiet streets.  The bars, discos and
tattoo parlors she was expecting were nowhere in sight, but occasionally
she did see a naked young person running around on foot or on a bicycle. 
Like Kim the year before, she wondered about that, but did not think to ask
due to her lack of language.  The only thing she enjoyed was swimming naked
at her school pool, free from the hassle and discomfort of having to wear a
swimsuit.  However, that hardly made up for the lack of anything else
exciting to do.  She balked at her school uniform and her host family with
their endless rules, formalities, and protocol.  She didn't bother to study
Danubian in her orientation classes and wrote angry letters home asking her
father, what the hell was with this country...I thought Europe would be
fun...this place totally sucks.

   Jennifer's heart reserved a special resentment against Helga Tolkiv, the
exchange program counselor at her school who always was telling her how to
behave.  Counselor Tolkiv was relatively young and quite attractive, but
her long skirts, old-style braided hair, and tall statuesque figure made
her a rather imposing woman.  She spoke in a quiet, but bossy tone of
voice, always using extremely correct English.  She was Danubian to the
core, very serious and obsessed with "honor".  Counselor Tolkiv was
Jennifer's main teacher, another aspect of her year abroad that grated on
her.

   Jennifer became popular in school, quickly making friends with several
Danubian girls with similar personalities and interested in hearing about
how wild life in the US was for high school students.  Jennifer embellished
a bit, as her classmates struggled to understand their American friend's
stories given in English.  Jennifer became the center of attention of the
school's more rebellious girls and a growing source of concern for the
school's teachers by the end of September.  Both Counselor Tolkiv and the
school principal began wondering how they could exert their authority over
Jennifer and lessen her influence over her classmates.  Finally it was
Jennifer herself who provided the school authorities with a justification
to make an example out of her in front of her peers.

   In California Jennifer frequently had skipped class at her high school.
No one thought anything of it because so many of her classmates did the
same thing.  No one in Jennifer's clique took school very seriously and the
teachers were glad to be rid of the more troublesome students.  Jennifer
skipped class for the first time during the third week of the school year
to smoke a cigarette in a nearby park.  Her classmates marveled at her
reckless courage, but Counselor Tolkiv gave her a very stern lecture about
the need to stay in school.

   "You are dishonoring yourself, the exchange program, and your teachers
with your behavior.  I trust you shall not dishonor us again."

   Jennifer rolled her eyes.  That act of disrespect earned Jennifer an
hour standing in the corner while the teacher graded some papers. 
Unfortunately the lesson did not sink in.

   Jennifer skipped class again the following week, but this time the
consequences were far worse.  As she sat smoking in the park, a police
officer noticed Jennifer's high school uniform and detained her.  He
demanded to know which school she had come from, getting a response in
heavily accented Danubian that she had been let out early by her exchange
program coordinator.  The story sounded unlikely to the cop, so finally he
handcuffed her and took her to several nearby schools to find out where she
needed to be.  Jennifer was incensed at being paraded around in handcuffs,
not yet realizing there was much worse to come.

   Finally the officer led Jennifer to the correct high school and into the
director's office.  Jennifer could tell the principal was furious.  He
called Counselor Tolkiv to his office and berated her in front of both
Jennifer and the cop.  The woman gave the girl a hostile look, angry that
Jennifer, after having been warned, was responsible for making her lose
honor.  On top of all that, the exchange student had committed a criminal
offense by lying to the policeman and was facing arrest.  Counselor Tolkiv
stood at attention in front of the two men and addressed them in Danubian,
after giving the American another quick, hostile glance.

   "Officer and Director, my student has insulted our school and the honor
of each of us.  I wish to take responsibility for her actions and for
assuring you this incident shall not be repeated.  I request your
permission to properly discipline her."

   The principal looked at the cop, who reluctantly nodded.  "That request
is granted, Counselor.  If you are willing to administer a proper
punishment, I believe we can let this incident be forgotten."

   Counselor Tolkiv then turned to the teenager and spoke in English.  "I
need to chastise you, Jennifer.  I am unhappy about having to do this to
you, but you have only yourself to blame.  You shall suffer because of the
choices you made."

   Fear and anger swept through Jennifer as the cop led her to an
unoccupied classroom.  Counselor Tolkiv trailed behind, shutting the door
as they entered.  The cop took off Jennifer's handcuffs as her counselor
issued her next order.

   "Jennifer, you shall undress.  Now."

   "What?!"

   "You heard me.  You are to undress, immediately."

   "Fuck you!  I'm not taking my clothes off!"

   The two adults were in no mood to argue.  The cop grabbed Jennifer's arm
and twisted it behind her back, as he pushed down on her neck in a grip
that immobilized her.  The girl's counselor pulled off her shoes and socks,
then jerked her skirt and panties to her ankles.  Jennifer then felt the
buttons on her shirt coming undone one by one and her bra strap being
unhooked.  The cop shifted position to allow the teacher to pull Jennifer's
shirt and bra off one arm at a time.  The student struggled viciously, but
in less than a minute she was naked.  The cop twisted Jennifer's hands
behind her back and put her handcuffs back on.

   The cop grabbed Jennifer's arms and pulled her upright.  Counselor
Tolkiv stood directly in front of her, face to face.  The girl was
resisting and breathing heavily as the cop held her tight.

   "Jennifer, if you wish to struggle like a criminal, you shall be treated
like a criminal."

   The cop led Jennifer down the main hallway to the school basketball
court as her counselor followed behind.  To Jennifer's horror the entire
student body was assembled on the bleachers.  The school principal was
standing next to a small chair and a microphone stand.  The chair had a
sinister-looking leather police switch on it.  Suddenly Jennifer realized
the seriousness of what was about to happen to her.

   The two adults and their captive took position next to the principal. 
The cop grabbed Jennifer's arm firmly to keep her standing in position. 
Counselor Tolkiv picked up the leather switch and tapped it in her hand as
the principal gave a rather long speech about the need to respect rules. 
Finally he concluded, pointing to the scared naked girl standing next to
him.

   "Among us is a person who thinks rules do not apply to her.  I presume
the fact she is an American makes her think she is special in some way, but
she shall learn that in this school, a student is a student, and she shall
be treated as such.  She shall learn the rules apply to all of you.  What
we have is an act of insurrection, and its perpetrator shall be punished.
She shall receive the maximum school punishment of 25 vigorous strokes
across the naked buttocks with a standard leather switch."

   The cop removed Jennifer's handcuffs and ordered her to lie across the
chair.  Her eyes wide with terror, Jennifer complied, realizing she only
could make her situation worse if she continued to resist.  Counselor
Tolkiv took a pair of small leather straps that looked like thick
watchbands from her pocket.  She wrapped a strap around each of Jennifer's
wrists and secured the girl's wrists to chair-legs.  Jennifer's hands were
immobilized, but, because this was not a judicial punishment, her legs were
not tied down.

   The counselor tapped Jennifer's bottom with the switch and struck her
hard across both bottom-cheeks.  As the stroke seared into her exposed
flesh, the student screamed from the pain and the pure terror of what she
was enduring.  She had not yet learned that in Upper Danubia a person being
punished normally tries to stay quiet as long as possible.  Jennifer's
high-pitched scream died down into a series of sobs as her counselor tapped
her bottom and struck again.  Once again Jennifer screamed as her legs
kicked up and down from the sharp pain of the two strokes.  The teacher did
not wait, but tapped her bottom and struck hard a third time.

   Counselor Tolkiv proceeded much more quickly than would have a police
officer.  This was a school punishment, not a judicial punishment.  She
struck, waited for Jennifer's scream to die down, tapped her bottom with
the switch, and struck again.  Each stroke was accompanied by a very loud
shrill scream, followed by a lot of vigorous crying and fluttering of her
lower legs.

   Jennifer was noisy throughout her punishment, as her Danubian classmates
watched the affair with fascination.  She had been something of a small
celebrity among her peers because of her nationality and her defiant
attitude about school rules.  The Danubian teenagers had known that
Jennifer was setting herself up to be disciplined.  Several of them tried
to warn her, struggling through the language barrier to get the American to
realize that, if she pushed too far, she could expect to be switched. 
Jennifer rudely rebuffed the classmates who tried to caution her, so they
simply waited to see how long it would take for her behavior to catch up
with her.

   The teacher struck the American harshly, but at the same time punished
her fairly quickly and methodically.  She felt somewhat sorry for the girl,
knowing that what was happening was a horrible shock to her.  Counselor
Tolkiv did not enjoy what she was doing, but felt the switching was
necessary to prevent the American from becoming a source of further
disruption at the school.

   Fifteen minutes and 25 strokes later, the punishment was finished. 
Jennifer's counselor bent down to unbuckle the straps immobilizing the
girl's hands.  Once her hands were free, Jennifer covered her face and
continued sobbing.  The American was in a lot of pain and totally
humiliated.

   Counselor Tolkiv grabbed Jennifer's wrist and pulled her up off the
chair.  She placed her hands on the sobbing girl's shoulders to position
her with her backside facing the audience.  Her bottom was marked with 25
red lines and was beginning to swell.  For a student her punishment had
been harsh, however, any convicted Danubian criminal would have been glad
to change places with her.

   As the American stood with her face buried in her hands, her counselor
moved in front of her to admonish her.  "Jennifer, you must stop crying. 
You are dishonoring yourself by making such a scandal over a simple
switching.  Furthermore, we cannot release you until you are silent."

   With a great effort Jennifer managed to stop crying after a few minutes.
The school principal declared the punishment over and ordered the students
to return to their classes.  Jennifer had to remain standing with her
backside facing her classmates until the last of them was out of the room.
The students filed out of the bleachers row by row, walking past Jennifer's
exposed backside as they proceeded towards the door to the main hallway. 
All of Jennifer's classmates, hundreds of them, got a good look at her
punished bottom as they slowly filed past her.

   Counselor Tolkiv then took her teary student to the school infirmary
where there was a bed she could lie down on to recover.

   "Jennifer, if you need to cry, now is the time to do so.  You may stay
here as long as you wish, but once you recover enough to put on your
uniform, I expect you to come to my office."

   She left Jennifer's school uniform on a chair next to the bed, and
closed the door to the small room.  Jennifer cried for an hour, but finally
got dressed and reluctantly went to the woman's office.  The American
endured a rather long lecture about responsibility and needing to set an
example for proper behavior.  The teacher finally released the girl for the
day, but made it very clear to Jennifer that she expected her back in class
the next day, on time, ready to study, and with her uniform presentable.

   That night Jennifer sullenly returned to her host family, her bottom
still quite sore from the welts.  The two parents were incensed.  They
pulled a hard wooden chair out of the kitchen and ordered the American to
sit down in the living room.  Jennifer winced as the uncompromising wood
from the chair pressed into her tender backside.  For the next hour her
host parents, using terrible heavily-accented English, lectured their guest
about personal responsibility and the need to safeguard her honor as
Jennifer shifted in her uncomfortable seat and tears rolled down her
cheeks.

   Once the lecture was finished and Jennifer was allowed to go to her
room, she finally had time to give her situation some thought, without
having any Danubians yelling at her.  At first she wanted to call her
parents in the US and have them extricate her from her year abroad.  But as
she picked up the phone, she reconsidered.  How on earth could she explain
this to them?

   Jennifer then realized she was mostly to blame for her own situation. 
She had chosen to come here as an exchange student.  She had chosen to
ignore Counselor Tolkiv and the school rules.  She had no one but herself
to blame for not bothering to do any research before signing the papers
that finalized her exchange student arrangements.  She now was stuck here
in Danube City, facing the awful realization she had to make the best out
of her life in this restricted country.

   Returning to school the next day was one of the hardest things Jennifer
ever did in her life.  At first she was mortified at the thought of having
been switched in the nude in front of nearly 400 classmates.  After a lot
of nagging and threats from her host parents, she went to school almost in
tears, expecting to be ridiculed by her peers.

   Jennifer quickly found out ridicule was not how Danubian teenagers
usually treated a fellow student who had been punished.  Such punishments
were common enough in Upper Danubia and were the logical outcome of
rebellious behavior in school.  Instead, Jennifer's classmates somewhat
sympathized with the American.  Several girls calmly sat down with the
exchange student and explained why she had been switched.  Anyia reminded
her they had tried to warn her and then added a detail that made Jennifer
cringe.

   "Counselor Tolkiv switched you because she had to.  I don't think you
realize that cop was going to arrest you for lying to him, because in our
country that's a crime.  They would have put you on trial and made you wear
a criminal's collar for a year for telling him you had your school's
permission to be out of class, and then refusing to say what school you
came from.  Counselor Tolkiv got you out of it; she jeopardized her own
honor to prevent you from being arrested.  You need to be grateful to her."

   That afternoon Jennifer, nervously twisting her hands in front of her,
apologized to her counselor and thanked her for preventing her from being
arrested.  The teacher responded:

   "Jennifer, you shall thank me by applying yourself in your studies.  If
I see you improving in your ability to study and to speak our language,
then you shall have shown me you are truly grateful.  As for yesterday's
punishment, the unpleasantness between us has passed, and I consider the
matter ended."

   Jennifer sadly nodded.  "I'll try, Counselor Tolkiv."

   Jennifer then went to the school library, where Anyia and her other
friends were sitting and reviewing textbooks for an upcoming test. 
Jennifer pulled some books out of her backpack and surprised them by asking
in her terrible Danubian:

   "I'm a bit behind, I guess, with the classes.  Could you help me get
caught up?"

   The other girls nodded and with that Jennifer became part of their study
group.

   ----------

   Jennifer spent much of the rest of her year in Upper Danubia hanging out
with Anyia.  The two girls quickly became close because of their very
similar personalities.  Anyia was a bit rebellious herself, but she knew
where the limits were and how to avoid crossing them.  That information was
something that Jennifer very much needed to avoid going nuts in her new
host country.  Over time Jennifer began going over to Dukov's house, but it
would be several weeks before she met Kim, given Kim's hectic schedule and
late night music sessions.

   One Sunday afternoon Jennifer went over to Vladim Dukov's house when Kim
happened to be there.  It was a bit of a shock seeing a fellow-American
naked and wearing a metal collar, but at the same time seeing an American,
any American, was a real treat for the high school student.  Jennifer and
Kim quickly struck up a conversation, both relishing the opportunity to
speak in English.  Kim told Jennifer her story and how she had been
sentenced the previous year for marijuana possession.  Jennifer was
shocked.

   "Soï¿½you've been like this for more than a year?  For smoking a joint?
I meanï¿½they never let you wear any clothesï¿½at all?"

   Kim smiled and shook her head.  "No clothes.  They're very strict about
that.  I mean, I go to work everyday, I've been on TV, I've stood singing
outdoors in front of thousands of fans, always like I am now.  It's part of
my sentence, but it's not so bad.  After a while you kind of enjoy it, at
least when the weather's warm."

   The sight of Kimberly Lee made Jennifer able to put her own situation
into perspective.  It was obvious that what had happened to her at school
was nothing in comparison with what had happened to Kim.

   ----------

   Kim's 20th birthday passed in celebration, first at her job at the music
store, then with the Dukovs, and finally at the Socrates Club.  Sergekt was
very affectionate and courteous to Kim, but at the same time she could tell
he was very nervous.  Finally, when the night was over and they left to
return to Dukov's house, she found out why.  Instead of simply leaving her
at the door, he asked to come in and talk to her in Dukov's living room. 
Once inside he opened up a small cloth bag he had carried with him and
pulled out a small carved wooden box.  He swallowed and handed it to Kim.
He then stood silent, according to Danubian protocol.

   A bit bewildered, Kim opened the box.  There were three items inside, a
gold ring, a silver necklace with a pendant showing two griffins standing
side-by-side, and a silver hairpiece with gold in-lays.  Sergekt's birthday
present was an engagement box.

   Kim's heart raced.  She knew there had to be protocol for accepting
these items, but she was not sure what it was.  She took a deep breath.

   "Howï¿½do we do this?  I mean, what do people usually do in this
countryï¿½when they get engaged?"

   "You hand me the items, one at a time, starting with the hair-piece,
then the necklace, finally the ring.  You tell me you accept each one and I
will put it on you."

   Kim picked up the hairpiece and handed it to Sergekt.

   "Sergekt, I accept this hairpiece with all my love."

   Sergekt took the hairpiece and gently pushed it into Kim's hair.

   "Sergekt, I accept this necklace with all my love."

   Sergekt wrapped the necklace around Kim's neck and clipped the clasp
shut.

   "Sergekt, I accept this ring, with all my love."

   Sergekt put the ring on Kim's finger.  It fit perfectly, leaving Kim
wondering how Sergekt knew her ring-size.

   Sergekt then knelt, kissed Kim's right hand and then her left.  He stood
up, took both of her hands in his own, and looked into her eyes.

   "You are the love of my present, and the wife of my future.  You have my
heart and in your hands you hold my happiness."

   For a long time Kim and Sergekt hugged each other in the silent living
room of Dukov's house.  So it was done, now it was official.  Kim was
Sergekt's fiancï¿½.

   It was painful, but finally Sergekt had to leave to go home.  Kim felt
bad for him because already it was well past mid-night and her partner had
to be up early the next morning for classes.  She watched Sergekt's bare
figure as he quickly walked up the chilly street to the trolley stop.  Kim
was immensely happy, but also rather scared.  She had thought about
marrying Sergekt, but now to be formally engaged to him made her realize
how seriously she had to take her life in Danube City.  So this was it. 
There really would be no going back to the US, except perhaps to visit. 
Kimberly Annette Lee would give up her US passport and take a Danubian one,
and return to her parents' house and her hometown as a foreigner.  She was
destined to finish her life in Upper Danubia, married to Sergekt Dolkiv.

   The following morning Kim proudly wore her engagement items to the
breakfast table and excitedly told the Dukovs about Sergekt's marriage
proposal.

   Kimï¿½s Spokesman had known about Sergekt's plans to marry her.  Sergekt
had asked his permission to propose, which he relayed to her parents in the
US.  It took some arguing and convincing, but finally the Lees reluctantly
agreed to allow the proposal to go ahead.  The decision was difficult for
Kim's parents, because finally they had to formally accept the fact their
daughter was not coming home at the end of her sentence.  Following the
conversation with her parents, Dukov went to the police warehouse and dug
into his client's confiscated backpack to find a couple of rings to lend to
her boyfriend to measure for a ring-size.

   Dukov told his client that Sergekt's proposal was timed to allow him to
marry her sometime shortly after the end of their sentences in July.  He
had followed Danubian protocol, first by dating Kim a year before
proposing, then waiting another year before getting married.  It was normal
for Danubians to get married about two years after they first started
dating.  It was a common-sense approach, which allowed a couple to
gradually build up a relationship over a two-year period before fully
committing to each other.

   In spite of her excitement over being engaged, there was one huge
disappointment.  Unfortunately for Kim, the prohibition against criminals
wearing jewelry applied to her engagement items.  She could not wear them
on the street or at work.  However, at any family, social or religious
function, she would be expected to wear the hairpiece, necklace, and ring
to show her commitment to Sergekt.  She wondered about the contradiction,
but this was Upper Danubia after all, with its strange rules and customs.

   ----------

   Whenever Kim turned on the radio station, she had to deal with the weird
feeling of listening to herself, along with Eloisa and the back-up singers,
featured in the collection of music currently popular.  The group's song
"The Wall that Divides my Soul" was well received throughout Upper Danubia,
and had been featured on the radio since the beginning of the summer. 
Several other songs from the group received frequent play, including the
still somewhat popular "Nemat mi biciklet", the title of which, when
translated to English, loosely meant "The loss of my bicycle has left an
emptiness in my life".

   During October, Eloisa was more upbeat than Kim had ever seen her. 
Increasingly she was able to allow physical contact with other people to
become part of her life.  She had broken the barrier of being able to hold
Dima's hand earlier in the year, but now she was able to hug both him and
some of her closest friends.  During conversations, if she wanted to make a
point, she could lightly touch a friend's hand or shoulder.  Eloisa and
Dima knew that sex still was way beyond her psychological capabilities, but
slowly she was moving in that direction.  As the fall progressed and Danube
City was pelted with cold rain, the change became evident in the music
Eloisa was choosing for her band's rehearsals.

   Eloisa increasingly was willing to experiment with the group's music. 
When Sergekt and three other musicians in the group proposed trying out
more modern instruments such as electric guitars and synthesizers, they
received the lead singerï¿½s full blessing.  "I'm willing to try anything,
as long as you know how to play it and can make it work with what we have
already.  The only thing I ask is that you have a clear idea of how you
would want to use any new instrument, and that you practice on your own
before you bring it here."

   Eloisa proposed something truly visionary for her group, something that
completely surprised the others.  She decided to re-record "The wall that
divides my soul" in English.  Eloisa was smart enough to realize the group
had to have at least some of its music sung in English if they were to have
any hope of breaking into the popular music scene outside Upper Danubia. 
That meant Kim would become the group's lead singer for a portion of the
group's music and Eloisa would sing with the back-up singers.

   Kim was dumbfounded by Eloisa's willingness to drop into the background.
However, Eloisa's proposal reflected her mentality and her desire to place
the needs of the group's music in front of her own notoriety.  Eloisa
wanted her music to succeed, period.  If that meant putting someone else
instead of herself at the lead microphone, so be it.  As she explained it
to Kim, "It's not just about the 15 of us on stage.  I have to think about
everyone who ever gave us a song to sing, and everyone who gave us themes
speaking at the Club.  This is about all of us."

   Reluctantly Kim translated several songs based on themes she had brought
to the Socrates Club back to English.  To help Kim, Eloisa ordered her
musicians to record instrumental versions of the group's music.  Kim spent
hours in the middle of the night quietly singing to herself, trying to see
how different combinations of words worked with the group's music.  By the
middle of October she felt ready to present the English lyrics of four
songs, "My bicycle", "The wall that divides my soul", "A question I cannot
answer", and "That's all I'll ever be".

   The first evening the group had to rehearse the English version of the
four songs, Kim stood at the microphone alone, feeling horribly guilty. 
Before she cued the musicians to start playing, she looked over her
shoulder at Eloisa, who was quietly waiting with the other back-up singers.
Finally Kim sighed, tapped her microphone, and signaled the musicians to
start playing.

   Once she started singing Kim's closed her eyes and shut out everything
other than her task at the moment.  Eloisa, on the other hand, was very
attentive to what was going on around her.  Her sharp ears listened for
anything that needed improvement, the tone of a singer's voice, the timing
of an instrument, a misplaced note.  After the first session Kim realized
how much Eloisa remained in charge when she went over a long list of
changes she wanted from her musicians and singers.  Maybe Eloisa did not
know English, but she did know how the sounds coming from Kim's mouth
should interact with the sounds coming from the rest of the band.  Eloisa
ordered her group to re-sing the music over and over until they got it
right.  Finally, one by one, the group mastered the four songs in English
to Eloisa's satisfaction and recorded them.

   Eloisa and Kim presented the English recordings to the music store
manager to review.  He was extremely impressed and could suggest no
changes. Later, when Kim was alone with her boss, she expressed her
feelings of guilt by displacing Eloisa as the lead singer.

   "Kimberly, let me explain something about Eloisa.  You did not displace
her as lead singer.  She knows what she's doing.  She made you record these
songs in English because she had to.  The English versions are what will be
played on radio stations in the EU.  However, people will listen to you,
and they'll want to hear more of your group's songs.  They'll buy the CD.
Thenï¿½they'll hear Eloisa's singing.  That's the real music.  They'll hear
the real power of her voice, and our language, in your group's songs."

   ----------

   Several music companies showed increasing interest in the group's music,
especially now that the group had four songs recorded in English.  Eloisa
had become the most popular singer in Upper Danubia by that time, to the
point there were real prospects of marketing the group's music outside of
the country.  However, there were a couple of hurdles the group had to get
past before they truly could go international.  One problem was their
forced nudity.  Obviously a group of naked singers could not produce videos
for markets such as the United States and expect to be taken seriously or
played on commercial television.  The other problem was the simple fact the
group did not even have a name.

   Kim addressed the name problem first.  She thought long and hard for a
name that would have some meaning for the lives of the band's 15 members.
Finally she settled on "Socrates' Mistresses".  She ran her suggestion past
the entire group, but there were no objections.  Everyone simply looked at
her quietly with trusting expressions, assuming that Kim, because she was
from the US, knew everything there was to know about the music business.

   Once the group officially had a name, events unfolded very quickly for
the members of "Socrates' Mistresses".  There were several televised
concerts during the end of October.  The group's shows began selling out,
requiring them to schedule more performances.  The group's reputation began
to extend beyond Upper Danubia's borders, as foreign fans and tourists
started crossing the border to listen to the group in Danube City's concert
halls.  At the end of the concerts the crowds started chanting:

   "DOC-DOC ELOISA!...DOC-DOC ELOISA!...DOC-DOC ELOISA!"

   Finally, at the beginning of November, an international recording
company approached the group with a serious and attractive offer about the
possibility of an international concert and shooting some videos.  The
offer presented the band's 15 members with a huge dilemma.  The
restrictions of their sentences remained in effect until the following
July: the prohibition against travel and the prohibition against clothing.
Since fans could come to Danube City, the travel restriction was not as big
a problem as was the group's forced nudity.  Obviously any video taken of
the band would be unacceptable in most foreign markets if the band members
could not perform dressed.

   Spokesman Dukov, Spokesman Havlakt, and the owner of Kim's music store
had to formally petition the Danubian Supreme Court to request a temporary
lifting of the clothing restriction to allow the band to wear clothes
during their video shoots.  The court was reluctant to grant the request
for a very legitimate reason; if this request were granted it would be
unfair to other criminals who continued to make personal sacrifices because
of the restrictions of their sentences.  In the end however, the judicial
panel decided to grant the request, since it was important for the band's
future to shoot a video acceptable to markets outside Upper Danubia.  The
ruling stipulated, however, that the band could only put on their clothing
during the actual videotaping.  At all other times they had to remain
naked.

   The outfits the band would wear were the clothes they would formally
receive in court during their de-collaring ceremony.  That meant formal
traditional dresses for the women and traditional tunics for the men.  The
band and the recording company had to present a formal schedule of video
shoots to assure the judges the members would be dressed as little as
possible.

   With that Kim was pushed into the forefront of "Socrates' Mistresses".
She became the band's international face, the one member who could bridge
the language barrier between the other members and the outside world.  She
sat nervously negotiating contracts, speaking in English and translating
for Eloisa and the owner of the music store.  She sat as the go-between for
the concert hall owners in Danube City as the recording company worked out
the final details of concert locations, lighting, acoustics and other
endless details needed to make sure the live concert video-shoots went
according to plan.  Kim had to become forceful and knowledgeable, and
overcome some very serious obstacles.  Vladim Dukov or the music store
owner always accompanied her, but Kim was under intense pressure because
she was the only person legally capable of speaking on behalf of the other
members of the band.  Her biggest challenge was to force everyone to take
her seriously, given that she was only 20 and often she was the only naked
person in a room full of older people in business attire.  In the end the
recording company settled on two live concerts that would be filmed in
front of international audiences, and the taping of eight studio
performances, four of them in English.  The videos would be used to promote
two CD's containing a total of 28 songs, which already had been recorded
during previous studio sessions.

   The studio video shoots came first.  Throughout November the band spent
their evenings practicing against backdrops and props brought in by the
recording company.  Once the issues of choreography, lighting, and
acoustics were settled the band shot the footage for the eight videos
during the first three weeks of December.  For the first time in a year and
a half Kim put on a dress as she sang in front of the cameras.  The soft
fabric of the long dress felt truly elegant on Kim's body, and she loved
the way the dresses looked on her four female companions.  Unfortunately,
the women's dark metal collars took away some of the elegance from the
dresses, but there was nothing anyone could do about that.  She thought the
guys looked a bit silly in their tunics.  However, the main focus of the
video would be on the group's singers, not the musicians, so the tunics
really did not matter.

   The final part of the video shoot project came with the filming of two
live concerts in December, one on Christmas Eve and the other on New Year's
Eve.  Leading up to the concerts Kim and Eloisa were interviewed by several
European news organizations about the band's history and the road to their
popularity in Upper Danubia.  The group's status as convicted criminals and
conditions of the members' sentences received much attention and comment.
One interviewer asked Kim if she had any thoughts about large numbers of
foreign fans coming to Danube City to see the group perform live.  Kim did
have a significant comment and advice for the group's fans.

   "I ask everyone who wants to come see us to remember something extremely
important.  The Grand Duchy of Upper Danubia is not Amsterdam.  Drugs here
are VERY illegal.  I learned that the hard way.  Please...please don't
bring anything illegal across the border.  I want everyone to enjoy
themselves, and I don't want anyone's trip to Danube City to end the way
mine did." Kim tapped her collar to emphasize her last final comment.

   At the beginning of January the production company packed up its
supplies and its workers returned west.  The project was a huge success. 
The two concerts received very positive reviews in the EU press.  The live
concert footage, combined with the studio footage, gave the European
production-company what it needed to make a series of videos to promote
"Socrates' Mistresses".  The bands' members folded their clothes and handed
them back to their Spokesman.  They wouldn't see the clothing again until
the end of their sentences in July.

   ----------

   The members of Socrates' Mistresses had spent a grueling two months as
the year drew to a close.  Not only did the band members have to spend
their evenings occupied with the music video shoots, but they also had to
fulfill their daily responsibilities to their employers and universities.
The members' first obligation was to their jobs, since it was by working
regular jobs that the criminals were complying with the employment
requirements of their sentences.  The music was of only secondary priority
as far as the courts were concerned.  On top of everything else were
studies.  All of the male members of the band were attending university
classes.  Sergekt had been the last one to enter classes, simply because he
had not been able to decide on a career.  Now, he too, had a full load of
university classes, as well as a part time job and his commitment to
Eloisa's band.

   Kim, in spite of her overwhelming responsibilities of the moment, began
to think about her own future in Upper Danubia.  Perhaps her work with
"Socrates' Mistresses" would last indefinitely, perhaps it wouldn't.  She
knew she had to study something else, have a back-up profession in case the
musical one did not work out.  It was Vladim Dukov who suggested a career
for her, one that had not occurred to his client.  At the end of December,
just before the band's Christmas concert, Vladim asked Kim to come into his
office and close the door.  He questioned her at length about her plans and
what she might do once she married Sergekt.  Right away Kim realized that
even if she had no clue of what she might do, her Spokesman did.

   "Kimberly, we need to start thinking about our future, and this time I
am not referring to the future of only you or myself.  I am referring to
the future of the Duchy.  I believe you will perform a more significant
role in the Duchy's future than you might realize."

   Kim sat silent, wondering where her Spokesman was going with this. 
Dukov continued:

   "Kimberly, have you contemplated attending the university?"

   "Uh...no, Spokesman Dukov, I really haven't.  My grades from high school
were so bad I can't get in anywhere in the US.  I figured I'd have the same
problem here."

   "You figured wrong, Kimberly.  There are no impediments to prevent you
from attending university classes here.  I believe you must consider
enrolling at the university and studying as quickly as possible, starting
in January."

   "But...what on earth could I study?  I mean, what am I gonna do here if
it's not staying with the music store or singing?"

   "I have given that matter consideration, and believe I know what you
should do, Kimberly.  You will understand I am the only Spokesman in the
entire country who speaks English.  I believe we must have another, that
is, another Spokesperson who speaks English and can properly represent
foreigners unfortunate enough to offend our laws.  I believe that after
several years of training, you can become that person, the Spokeswoman who
can fulfill our country's needs."

   Kim's heart stopped.  "Me?  You want me to...to...become a Spokeswoman?"

   "That is correct, Kimberly.  I want you to consider that as a path in
your life.  You can determine if such a destiny is fitting as you study and
work in my office as my apprentice.  If you decide such is your destiny,
you could speak as an apprentice on behalf of criminals within two years. I
ask you to consider this path in life for a reason.  The days of our
country's isolation are ending.  More and more tourists will be coming to
visit the Duchy, and like you, some of them will fail to respect our laws.
We will be obligated to convict and punish more foreigners; people who will
need a compassionate and competent official to speak in court on their
behalf.  You will be able to speak from the heart, as a foreigner who was
herself convicted and punished.  Your clients will trust and respect you,
as a person who suffered what they must suffer."

   "But...how could I do that?  I'd have to study law and all kinds of hard
things.  I mean...I'm not the world's greatest student."

   "And you assume I would not make myself available to assist you?"

   "But you think I could really do it, I mean, be a Spokeswoman?"

   "I know that fact with certainty, Kimberly.  The path of your life is
what I envisioned the night of the equinox.  I was shocked at first, but as
I reflected on what I envisioned, the more it made sense to me.  I believe
it is your destiny to speak in our courts, just as it has been mine to
speak in our courts."

   Kim paused, suddenly remembering her own vision of Vladim Dukov during
the Day of the Dead march, the one of him speaking to thousands of chanting
supporters.  She wondered if Dukov's career as a Spokesman was about to
draw to a close, if life had much greater things in store for him.  If that
were true, then Kim felt obligated to help him as much as she could.  She
would help him by replacing him, by allowing him to leave his position with
the security of knowing a competent person would take his place and fulfill
his current responsibilities towards his clients.

   "I'll do what I can, Spokesman Dukov.  I'll study and try to help you.
You've done a lot for me and I do owe you."

   With that Tatiana came in with a thick university packet.  It turned out
Kim was not the only person in the office who was destined to be a
Spokesperson.  Tatiana also was beginning her studies to become as
Spokeswoman, with the goal of eventually returning to her home province and
working in the provincial capitol.  With that Kim realized she not only had
a mentor, but she also would have a study partner.  There was no reason,
none whatsoever, why she could not eventually fulfill Dukov's
responsibilities and become a Danubian Spokeswoman for the Criminal.