amoralginger - D.A.R.E
Posted to AO3 and included here by kind permission of the author.
D.A.R.E
Society has shifted and adherence to a strict moral code known as the Social Harmony becomes mandatory. Officer Cranston visits a class of students to talk about the dangers of female masturbation. During his presentation, he explains the strict laws forbidding such deviant activity and the extreme, life-altering consequences for those women who are caught violating such a fundamental societal norm. A young woman convicted of masturbation accompanies the officer, and tells her story to the class.
NOTE: Ages of the students are left ambiguous. You can assume the students are 18 years old in their senior year of high school. The ambiguous age tag is there just in case, given the setting.
As Addison walked into her third period health class, she couldn't help but notice the man sitting in the corner of the room. Mid-30's, short hair, clean shaven, Officer Cranston was practically a caricature of a police officer. A patch on his sleeve identified him as part of the Bureau of Morality's Moral Enforcement Task Force. She'd never admit it to her classmates, but Addison found him super-cute in a ruggedly handsome sort of way.
In any case, it was going to be one of those lessons. Drugs are bad. Stay in School. Be faithful. Don't join a gang. It would be weird and condescending and awkward, but at least she could enjoy the eye candy.
This time, a young woman sat next to the police officer. She was thin, blonde and obviously attractive in spite of the conservative dress she wore. Last time it had been a recovering heroin addict that accompanied the officer to help explain the real-world consequences of drug abuse. Just looking at that guy, you could tell he'd put his body through hell, even though he'd been clean for several years. This girl today, however, seemed perfectly healthy... except maybe for her eyes.
There was something in her eyes. Sadness? Or maybe horror? Those eyes could have belonged on a woman who had lost a child. Even more than the drug guy, Addison had the impression that this girl had been through something awful.
"Oh look, it's Officer Crammed-a-stick-up-his-butt!" Danielle stage whispered as she walked into the room and took her seat behind Addison. "He can tell us more about how to be Dumb And Really Embarrassing!" Her friend was awesome, but she never shut up, and always said the first thing on her mind. In spite of her way with words, Addison suspected that ‘discretion' was absent from Danielle's vocabulary.
"Shhh, He'll hear you!" Addison hissed under her breath.
"It's not like they don't already know who the troublemakers are, you know," Erin piped up from the left side. "They have cameras everywhere. Loud, quiet, here, at home, they'll find you if you're going to upset the Social Harmony."
"Well, I think we would all be more harmonious if he took a laxative or something. You can tell, it's really up there! No one's gonna be happy till it's out." Danielle replied, but in a lower voice. "Then we can all just chill. Him most of all. Hey, maybe that's the chick's job. Think she's carrying his poop pills?"
Ms Benton, their health, teacher stood up and glared in their direction, from the front of the room. Addison didn't know if she'd heard Danielle's comments, or if she was merely annoyed that they were talking when it was time for the class to begin. "Good morning class, Officer Cranston is back again today, along with his guest to present a special lesson." Ms. Benton gestured toward the officer and the young woman at the front of the class.
"Thank you, Ms. Benton. Hello everyone! As I'm sure you're aware I'm Officer Cranston from the D.A.R.E. program. Who remembers what that stands for?" Officer Cranston asked.
Several students raised their hands, including Erin. At the same time, Addison could hear Danielle whisper, very slowly, very quietly this time, "Dumb... And.. Really... Embarrassing."
Officer Cranston pointed to Ethan, a boy in the second row. "Deviant Activity Resistance Education."
"That's right. I'm here to teach you how to identify and resist some of the deviant, disruptive activities that creep up in our daily lives. We've talked about the dangers of drugs and substance abuse. We've talked about unhealthy peer pressure. We've talked about the importance of faithfulness, and the consequences of breaking our commitments. These are all temptations to deviate from what we call the Social Harmony. I know we go over this every time I stop by, but this is important. So, who can tell me what the Social Harmony is?"
More hands went up. Thankfully, Danielle remained mercifully quiet.
This time, the officer called on Erin, who was only too happy to contribute. "The Social Harmony is the set of ethical and moral ideals, norms and expectations that guide participation in our society."
Officer Cranston blinked. "Yes, but.. can you put it in your own words? It's important to understand what we're talking about, not just memorize a definition."
Erin was clearly caught off-guard by that. "Uh, well, I mean, it's like the societal expectation, the ideals we follow, the purpose of civilization, right?"
"Mmm, I suppose," the Officer acknowledged.
Addison had to stifle a giggle. Watching Erin the know-it-all get called out for sounding like a textbook was just too perfect.
Years ago, when she was a kid, Addison used to be friends, or at least friendly with Erin. They were practically neighbors, her house was just five doors down from Addison's. Back then, Erin had this wide, eager smile that somehow became less friendly and more arrogant as the years passed.
At some point Erin got really involved in her local church group and now everything was Jesus this and Social Harmony that. She had such a snotty attitude, Addison wouldn't have been shocked to learn that some of the other girls in her church girls couldn't stand her either.
However, Erin had a body Addison envied with her vibrant raven hair, toned arms and perfect proportions. If Addison had a body like that instead of rocking the pale, bespectacled twig-girl look she'd show it off. Instead Erin hid under her ridiculously conservative dresses that looked like they belonged on someone living a hundred years ago.
"Let's see what other people think," Cranston continued. "How about someone who didn't raise their hand before. How about.... you." He pointed at Danielle. "How would you describe what the Social Harmony is? I know it's a bit of a tricky concept, and it's okay if it's not a perfect answer. Just try to put your own understanding into words."
In spite of her earlier disdain for the Officer, Danielle didn't miss a beat. "Sure. So, everyone is different, right? Like, I'm loud and like to talk but Alex over there is quiet. And that's okay, but there are some things that aren't okay, like cheating on your boyfriend and doing drugs and hurting people. So," and here she held up air quotes with her fingers, "‘maintaining the Social Harmony' is just a stupid fancy way of saying you can be yourself, same as always, but only so much so that it doesn't cause a lot of trouble for everyone else."
Officer Cranston was nodding along with the explanation. "Yes," he said, "exactly. It's about not stepping over the boundary where you start to cause problems for everyone else."
Addison reflected that Danielle had not only gotten away with using the word ‘stupid' to describe the Social Harmony, but she'd gotten ‘Officer Crammed-a-stick-up-his-butt' to praise her for it. It was easy to mistake Danielle for a classic air-head bimbo with her blonde hair, thin body, big boobs and motor-mouth. However, underneath all that she had a dangerously quick mind.
"Another important aspect of the Social Harmony is that everyone has a different role to play. You are all students. I am a police officer. While skipping school would be a violation of your role in the Social Harmony, that doesn't apply to me. On the other hand, I would be in violation of the Harmony if I didn't show up at the police station ready to fight crime every morning. What is expected of each of us, depends on who we are and how we fit into society. Last time we talked a little bit about how expectations can be different for men and women. Who can remember some examples? How about you?"
Again, he pointed at someone who hadn't raised a hand, a boy named Jared in the back row. Addison remembered from earlier classes that the officer had an annoying habit of calling on people he thought might not be paying attention. Addison suspected he started the class calling only on volunteers to lull everyone else into a false sense of security.
"Oh, umm. Yeah. Yeah. What was the question again?" Jared stuttered.
"Why don't you help him out?" Cranston pointed to Alex, the shy, freckled red-head sitting next to him.
"Okay, sure, so, so, gender expectations. Right, um, so," Alex stuttered, trying to respond. She'd probably been paying attention, but Alex always stuttered. "So, um, so, boys have to put in more effort when they like a girl, right? So, they have to treat us right, and if a guy hurts a girl, like punches one of us, he gets in way more trouble. But, but, so, if we cheat on a boyfriend, we're in more trouble. Um. Is that right?"
"Very good," The officer approved. "I see someone was paying attention. A man who beats his wife or girlfriend, is going to be looking at felony charges, while at most we'll hold a woman who slaps her husband in the local jail to cool off for a day or two. Men are stronger than women, so it's a man's responsibility to control that strength. Likewise, it is a woman's responsibility to remain faithful and adultery therefore carries felony charges for women."
"Now, when talked about the dangers of substance abuse, one of the most important things we went over is the notion of a ‘gateway drug.' These are substances like alcohol and marijuana which, when taken in moderation don't cause too much harm, but they can lead people to believe drugs aren't as dangerous as they really are. It's best to just say ‘no' to alcohol and marijuana, to never start down that path. Today, however, we won't be talking about drugs. Instead, we'll be talking about an unhealthy activity that can be extremely addictive. And, like alcohol or marijuana can be a gateway to more dangerous drugs such as heroine or methamphetamine, masturbation can be a gateway to adultery, shattered marriages and other deviant behavior."
A wave of muffled murmuring and giggles passed through the class at the mention of masturbation. "I dunno, he seems pretty backed up. Maybe he should try it?" Danielle hissed quietly.
Addison pretended she didn't hear. She was pretty sure where this was going. This wasn't about guys. This was about how girls could do it too. She hadn't realized this when she'd explored her body under the covers at night, and had found a way to make herself feel... good. Like, really, really, good. Only later did she connect the dots and realize what she'd done. That's when she realized it wasn't just bad, but illegal. She'd vowed to herself never to do it again, and she'd managed to only break that vow once or twice... each week. It was, after all, a really, really, really good feeling.
Now, she was absolutely terrified that super-cute officer Cranston would know that she was a masturbator. What if he could tell somehow? It would somehow be twice as bad if the hunky police officer called her out in front fo the whole classrather some teacher or one of her parents pulled her aside. Addison stayed quiet and tried not to let her face give anything away.
"Okay, okay, settle down. Yes, masturbation, ha, ha, ha. I know a lot of you think it's funny, but it's important to know the facts. Ignorance leads to deviant behavior, so it's important to stay informed. Since so many of you find it amusing, I can only assume you all know what masturbation is. You," He pointed to Jared again, "you were laughing, so I'm going to assume you're paying attention this time. Why don't you explain for anyone in class who doesn't know: what is masturbation?"
"Yeah, I know but, how do I say it? Uh, it's uh, like jacking off? Spanking the monkey? Polishing the rod?" He gestured with his hand in front of the crotch of his jeans, moving quickly up and down along an imaginary erection.
"Well, you're not wrong," The officer allowed. "But slang like that probably isn't very helpful for anyone who doesn't already know what masturbation is. Does anyone think think they can be a bit more specific?"
Very slowly, very tentatively, the first boy Cranston had called on, Ethan raised his hand. It was alone. Not even Erin wanted to answer this one.
Cranston nodded. "Go ahead."
"So, when you, or rather, when a boy has sex he puts his, ah, penis into a girl, right? And, to make a baby his er, semen has to go into her. And, like, when that happens, when it comes out, it's a good feeling. And, like, it doesn't have to be a girl, it could be, like your own hand. So, it's like sex, but it's not sex, it's just you, er, the boy by himself."
"Thank you." The officer smiled. "I know it's awkward to talk about this, but that's a pretty good description of how a boy might masturbate. When a boy or a man touches his penis or stimulates it in another way without the help of a woman with the intent to ejaculate for the purpose of pleasure rather than pro-creation, that is masturbation. Now, how about for women?"
"Oh, women don't masturbate," Ethan said quickly, obviously relieved not to be describing something he found embarrassing. "Women don't make semen, just us. That doesn't even make sense. Our, uh, stuff goes in them, they can't make it themselves."
There was dead silence in the classroom.
Addison suspected that most of the girls knew that Ethan was wrong, though probably not from first hand experience. Most of their mothers, just like hers, had probably pulled them aside and explained in no uncertain terms what they should never, ever do. Some of the boys had probably learned too. There was a reason the only one willing to answer the question was a boy. Addison stared straight ahead and tried to remain calm.
Cranston didn't immediately correct Ethan. Instead he pursed his lips, than asked, "Have any of you heard the word ‘orgasm' before?"
Ethan, confused, but sensing he'd said something wrong, responded without raising his hand. "Isn't that just another word for when a boy, you know, makes his stuff? Ah, what did you say, when he ejaculates?"
Cranston shook his head. "Not quite, though it's a very common misconception. An orgasm is the pleasurable sensation that accompanies an ejaculation. Men orgasm and ejaculate at the same time. However, women are just as capable of having an orgasm as men, even if there is no ejaculation."
Once again, you could hear a pin drop in the silence.
"Now, there are many well-meaning people who think it's a bad idea to spread this information, just like there are many well-meaning people who think it's a bad idea to tell you about some of the dangerous drugs that are out there. But, the truth is that keeping you in the dark will only mean you're unprepared to deal with the dangers you'll inevitably encounter. Ignorance can and will lead you to stumble, unaware down a deviant and tragic path. That's why I'm here, with the D.A.R.E. program to make sure you face these issues fully educated, and fully prepared to confront the deviant temptations you're going to face in life."
The officer took a deep breath. Maybe the topic made him a little bit uncomfortable too? "So, today we're going to talk about masturbation, and in particular female masturbation. While it is very possible for a woman to masturbate by touching herself in a very specific way, it's important to understand that masturbation and orgasms for women are fundamentally different than for men. As, ah, what's your name?" He pointed at Ethan.
"Ethan."
"As Ethan pointed out, the male orgasm happens along with ejaculation. This is necessary for human reproduction. In order to keep his reproductive system in good working order, it is reasonable and healthy for a man to ejaculate every one to two weeks. Therefore, occasional masturbation in men is tolerated."
Glancing around the classroom at some of the boys who weren't very good at concealing emotion on their faces, Addison suspected some of them may have been ensuring their systems were ‘in good working order' more frequently than once a week. Lucky bastards. They didn't know how good they had it. Forget once a week, if... when... no, if! She'd stop now. For real, this time. If, if she did the same, ever, which she wouldn't...probably. But, if she did, it was illegal. How was that fair?
"However, unlike male ejaculation and orgasm, female orgasm has no significant role in human reproduction," Cranston continued oblivious to Addison's inner turmoil. "Further, a woman will only sometimes experience an orgasm during sexual intercourse. When a woman is truly, deeply in love with a man, when she opens herself up completely to him, emotionally and physically, then she may experience an orgasm when they make love. The female orgasm is rarer, but far, far more powerful, more pleasurable, more overwhelming than the orgasm a man experiences when he ejaculates. In fact, when a woman orgasms from intercourse with her husband, it is something very, very special, a wonderful experience that deepens and strengthens the emotional bond between a man and a woman."
"However, when a woman masturbates, she isn't strengthening her relationship other than the one she has with herself. If a woman experiences the overwhelming pleasure of an orgasm outside the bounds of a deep, meaningful relationship, it can, in fact, prevent her from ever having a deep meaningful relationship. She puts herself before her husband or future husband. A woman who gives herself pleasure becomes isolated, selfish, and, fundamentally a very serious deviant.
"Female orgasms are exactly like a drug: overwhelmingly pleasurable and addictive. When this is a rare experience within a healthy marriage, that does serve an important role. However, when a woman has an orgasm from masturbation it has no redeeming social value. Rather, it is a selfish, dangerous, deviant, illegal act that at best, disrupts the Social Harmony, and at worst, destroys families. Ninety percent, that's nine out of ten times, when the Morality Enforcement Task Force investigates and confirms a case of adultery, the woman is also guilty of masturbation. Let that sink in."
"So, to summarize, not only does female masturbation have serious consequences by itself, it is also a gateway drug to adultery. That's why it is illegal. Any questions, so far?"
Jared, of all people, tentatively raised his hand. Addison had once seen him sleep through an entire class in the back row, and now he was not only paying attention, but asking a question? Meanwhile, Addison and, she suspected, just about every other girl in the class wanted to be somewhere else. Absolutely anywhere else. How about a nice cage with a hungry tiger?
"Uh, so like, seriously, girls do it? Like, it, it? Like he said," Jared gestured at Ethan, "how do they spank the monkey without, ya know, a monkey?"
Cranston raised an eyebrow. "Ah, a worldly gentleman such as yourself has never heard of polishing the pearl? Digging for clams? Finger painting? How about flicking the bean?"
"Oh. Oh, like flickin' the bean? I thought that was, like, a table-manners thing? So, that's prob'ly why my Ma flipped out on my sister over a bean? And then I heard my Ma say, like, she was glad she didn't finish cookin' it. That was weird."
"I would imagine so, yes." The officer still had his eyebrow raised, and seemed to be trying not to smirk. "Thankfully, it sounds like your mother caught your sister before she reached an orgasm, so no crime was committed. Euphemisms and slang aside, your initial question is a good one: how does a masturbator go about committing her crime? What are the mechanics of it? I want to stress, in no uncertain terms to all of the ladies here, that what we are about to describe is entirely illegal, and should be carefully avoided. However, it is important to stay informed, to know what to avoid, and how to spot deviant behavior in those around you."
The projector lit up in the front of the room. It showed a cartoon diagram of the external female genitalia, a sketch of what you would see looking at a woman's crotch if her legs were spread and she was shaved.
"As I'm sure you've learned, during sexual intercourse a man's penis enters a woman's vagina, here." Cranston used a laser pointer to highlight the opening on the diagram. "This entire area around the vagina is called the vulva. Just above the vaginal opening, above the urethral opening, where a woman urinates from, there's a small, very sensitive bump, which is usually hidden under a hood of skin. This bump is called the clitoris, and while it is small it has even more nerve endings than the male penis. The primary way that masturbators perpetrate their crime is by stimulating the clitoris with their fingers, or by rubbing it against something. Consider the slang we were discussing. The bean? the pearl? Those are both slang terms for clitoris. Here's a picture of the real thing."
The projector moved on to the next slide, which was the same view, only it was a photo of a real, shaved vulva, not a cartoon diagram. A bright red arrow highlighted the clitoris.
A murmur passed through the class at the explicit image. Addison thought she heard a boy somewhere behind her whisper "Ooh, porn," under his breath but she couldn't tell who it was.
"What you can see here is typical female anatomy. However, it may interest you to know that this is the vulva of a convicted masturbator after she was convicted and immediately before her sentence was carried out. Does anyone know, or would anyone care to guess how we punish convicted masturbators?"
This time, Erin was the only one to raise her hand. Evidently her arrogant need to be the smartest person in the room had finally overpowered her embarrassment at the topic. "Masturbators are circumcised without any anesthetic."
Addison crossed her legs under her seat. Her mother had explained. She didn't want to have to hear about this again. It hardly seemed possible that they actually did that, that this was a normal, every day thing that happened to actual people. It couldn't be normal. But it was.
Cranston nodded slowly. "That's right. Now, I want to be clear right from the start, and prevent any confusion about this. Female circumcision is a common, routine, surgical procedure that can be carried out completely painlessly under anesthesia. The common, non-judicial form of circumcision is nothing to be afraid of. Those who think it will benefit their lives or their relationship, can volunteer for a circumcision and the government, the Bureau of Morality will pick up the tab, no questions asked. That said, can you describe in more detail what circumcision is?"
Circumcision was one of things things you heard about in passing. However, it wasn't until Addison's mother had a certain talk with her that she learned exactly what it meant. Circumcision was discussed in vague terms, as one of those medical procedures some girls might need, like braces or acne cream.
"Well," Erin started, "for men, circumcision is the removal of the foreskin, the skin at the tip of the penis that isn't really necessary for sex, and it's often done for sanitary or cultural reasons."
"Yes, and in women?" Cranston prompted. Addison had the impression that Erin started with the off-topic definition for men because she was having second thoughts about actually explaining this in front of everyone.
To Erin's credit, though, she powered through. "Since circumcising for a man means removing his foreskin, which can cause problems and isn't necessary for sex, circumcising a woman means removing her clitoris and usually the labia minora, which can cause problems and aren't necessary for having sex."
"That's exactly right," The officer agreed. "After the clitoris is removed masturbation becomes impossible. Some people, some girls are more prone to masturbation than others. Either they or their parents decide that it would be better to remove the temptation. That decision isn't something to be embarrassed about, it should be applauded. Usually, there are a few girls in every class who have been circumcised already. Have any of you already had the procedure? Show of hands."
Meghan and Alex raised their hands. Everyone, or at least most of the girls knew Meghan had been cut. She would have been called out if she hadn't admitted it.
On the other hand, when Alex raised her hand a few other girls shot her a dirty look. At one point Alex had let slip a comment that implied she'd been cut, but some of the girls thought she was lying. Alex was shy, and was really careful not to reveal anything definitive in the locker room. She could have resolved everything by just showing a few other girls what she had down there, but she always refused.
"Let's give these brave ladies a round of applause," Cranston. "Here are two girls who won't ever become deviant masturbators."
There was an awkward smattering of applause. This time, it was Erin, not Danielle who muttered under her breath: "One, not two."
Unlike Danielle's comments, Cranston heard this one, since he was standing right next to her. "Excuse me?"
Addison watched as Erin's face contorted as she tried to decide with whether to explain her comment. She opted for the truth. "Everyone knows Alex isn't really circumcised, she's just pretending. Whenever anyone asks to see proof, she just covers herself and makes excuses."
Alex's face was turning as red as her hair. She appeared even more desperate to be away from this conversation than Addison was.
"Ah," Cranston glanced over at Alex with a nod of understanding. "Alex?"
Alex acknowledged by nodding, too mortified to speak.
"First, a healthy sense of modesty is a good thing, no need to apologize for it. That said, there's no shame in exposing yourself so long as it's only for the purpose of proving your circumcision. If you want to show off that you're a pure woman, you go right ahead and I'll be the first to pull anyone aside that says you're out of line. But, you don't have to. It's up to you. Maybe the best way to sort this out is to go into the bathroom with Ms. Benson, and she'll set the record straight for everyone, so there's no misunderstanding here?"
Something snapped in the girl. "You know what? Fine. Fine! You all want to see? Fine. Everyone gets to see! If you're all so interested, then why not?"
The girl everyone knew as the shyest nerd in class stalked to the front, kicked off her shoes, then removed her socks, followed by her pants, and then her panties. She grabbed a chair from one of the unoccupied desks in the front row, plopped it in front of the class, sat down and spread her legs wide. Then, with her fingers, she pulled her lower lips apart. "Ta-da! This is me, now."
Addison squinted. From back where she sat, she couldn't see any inner lips and she thought she could make out a smooth spot on Alex's exposed crotch where her clit should be, but she couldn't be sure. Unlike the image on the projector Alex hadn't shaved her pubic hair.
Cranston blinked in surprise than leaned in, very slightly and nodded. "Yes, that looks like a professionally done circumcision, alright. You should be proud."
Amid the buzz of the surprised that passed through the class, Jared could be heard from the back row, calling out. "Oh, hey! The carpet matches the drapes!"
Ms. Benton pointed a finger at him. "Detention! See me after class."
Jared shut up.
Alex, on the other hand, had found her voice. "See, evidently my mom couldn't control herself, and needed to get circed. My mom has red hair. I have red hair. Evidently that's a thing. So, my mom, not my dad, my mom, decided that if it was good enough for her, it was good enough for me. Ta-da!"
Addison winced. Poor girl.
"Did it hurt?" Kayla, a girl in the second row asked, unbidden. She was known for being a bit inappropriate around some of the boys in the class, and Addison wondered if her parents had talked to her about getting circumcised.
On the one hand, Kayla probably had the largest chest of any girl in the class, but on the other... well, she wasn't exactly fat. Addison would rather have had those curves than her complete lack thereof. Unfortunately, Kayla also had a serious problem with acne. She also kept coming on way too strong, then striking out with the boys she was interested in. That meant Kayla had an aura of desperation about her and a rather bad reputation.
"Hurt?" Alex echoed, in response to Kayla's question. "No, not really. No. But now I..." Alex glanced at Officer Cranston, then back.
...but now she couldn't come. Addison finished the thought in her head, that Alex didn't dare say aloud. Alex had tried it, had played with herself before they took her clit... and now she wouldn't, ever again.
"I guess I'm still really upset that I couldn't make the decision for myself," Alex finished lamely. "Can I please put my clothes back on and go back to my seat now, please?"
Cranston nodded, and Alex quickly started to put her clothes back on.
"For those of you in the back that didn't get a good view, here's a close-up of the same masturbator as before, after her sentence was carried out," Cranston announced.
The projector switched to show two smaller images, side by side. On the left was a smaller version of the the picture from before, with the clitoris highlighted. On the right was a new picture that showed only scar tissue in the same location. Additionally, on her thigh, there was a small tattoo with the words "CRIMINAL MASTURBATOR." It would definitely be clearly visible in a bikini.
Cranston used his laser pointer to highlighted the scarred location where the clitoris had been removed. "This was done as part of a judicial procedure, with little care to make the circumcision smooth and professional like what we saw on Alex, before. Note the tattoo, to ensure she can't hide her past from a potential suitor."
"To reiterate, the judicial variant of circumcision is very different than the routine version of the procedure. No pain medication is administered. Not only is this a highly effective deterrent, but circumcision prevents a criminal masturbator from ever experiencing an orgasm again, putting a definitive end to her crime spree. What I want you to remember is that the clitoris has more nerve endings than the penis. This procedure is one of the most painful things a human being can experience, significantly more intense than natural childbirth, without an epidural or other pain medication. Gentlemen, to give you some understanding of what a masturbator is subjected to, imagine how painful it would be to have your penis removed. This isn't something we do lightly, but it's important to send a powerful message that female masturbation is nothing less than a threat to our society and our way of life."
"As it happens, I brought a guest with me today." He gestured to the girl sitting off to the side of the classroom. I'd like to introduce Sylvia Meritt. She's the convicted masturbator who modeled for these images."
The projector switched to the next slide. This time the camera was zoomed out to show a naked blonde girl, strapped onto a metal table with her legs spread wide and her feet in stirrups She was clearly terrified. Everyone could now see that it was the same girl, Sylvia, that sat at the front of the classroom.
"In addition to the pain of a judicial circumcision, each procedure is recorded and made publicly available. Criminals such as Sylvia give up their right to modesty along with their clitoris. Anyone can type in Sylvia's name into a search engine and see explicit pictures of her naked body. I'd like to add that this includes this disturbing video footage that served as proof of her masturbation habit, and which led to her conviction."
The projector switched to video without sound, of a half-naked Sylvia lying on her bed. Her pants and underwear around her ankles as her right hand furiously clawed at her crotch. Her eyes were tightly shut and she was breathing heavily.
"If anyone was wondering, that's what female masturbation looks like. You're watching a crime in progress. Courts generally require concrete, indisputable video evidence before handing down a conviction for masturbation to avoid any false accusations. But, let me warn you, it's easy for us to get a search warrant, cameras can be quite small and they're absolutely everywhere. The vast majority of the time, we collect evidence on existing cameras, without having to place any new ones. It's a lot harder than you might think to hide a masturbation habit. If you're guilty, we will catch you. Just like we caught Sylvia. But, I'm going to let her tell her own story. Then she'll be happy to answer any questions you have for her."
The video projector shut off. Sylvia stood up, and walked slowly to the center of the classroom. "Hi. I'm Sylvia. I'm here as part of my remaining community service the judge assigned along with the circumcision. That was four months ago, but it doesn't seem like it. Sometimes I forget that it's gone and I go to pee, and it's like, wow, is that really me? But it is. Now it is. And I still have the nightmares about... but no, let me start over. My story. Okay."
"I became a criminal masturbator when I was still in high school. The first time, I didn't know any better. I was taking a shower, and it when the water hit me down there it felt especially nice. So, later, I took my hands and touched that spot some more. That felt even better, and I, I climaxed. I had an orgasm. That first time, I didn't really understand what I did. But, then, a few months later a masturbator in my class got caught, and everyone was talking about it. That's when I realized, wait, this is masturbation, this is wrong and I need to be careful never to do it again."
"If I'd stopped then, it would have been fine. I'd gotten lucky. No one suspected, and I could have simply stopped, cold turkey and no one would have ever found out. But, what you have to understand is that's not how addiction works. I'd been doing it several times a week for months at that point. I couldn't just stop. I tried to stop, I really, really did. I lasted five days. Somehow knowing I shouldn't do it, made me want to do it more, and it was all I could think about. Five days, and by then I was so worked up I gave in."
"And, when I gave in... it was fine. It wasn't as if I suddenly heard police sirens wailing outside my window, coming to get me. It was fine. And I told myself it was fine. If I knew then, what I know now, I would have gotten a voluntary circumcision at that point. It would have solved a lot of problems. No pain, no problem no... no nightmares."
"But, that's not what I did. I kept going. Six months later, I had a close call. One night, my kid brother had a nightmare and for some reason he ran screaming to my room instead of my parents room. So, one moment I'm going at it, and the next a screaming toddler bursts in, followed by my parents less than a minute later. I had about two seconds to realize what was happening, wrap my bedspread around my naked body and to catch my breath so no one would realize what I'd been doing. I got away with it, because they were all focused on how my brother was throwing a tantrum rather than noticing that I was red-faced, out of breath, and naked under the covers."
"So, what was I going to do? I realized, if I kept going someone was eventually going to notice. I could lock my door, but that would almost be like hanging a giant sign on my back that said ‘masturbator'. That's the first thing they check if they suspect you. Does she lock her door at night? It's a cliche, you know. So, I got creative. I reasoned, if I got caught by myself, it was masturbation, but if I got caught with a boy, that's just sex. Sure, sex before marriage is a scandal, but it's not technically illegal. They don't take away your clit for doing that."
"I had a friend, Sara, who had a twin brother, Keith. Fraternal, not identical, obviously. He had a bit of a crush on me, and one day I went to him and said, I'll show you mine, if you show me yours. He got really excited at that, and we went back to his place, or rather his parents place though no one was home. We got naked, and I let him see me, and touch me but only with his hands. Then, I told him that I didn't want to get pregnant, but I wanted to go further, and I suggested instead of sex, he could use his hands while watching me, and... I could do the same, watching him. He freaked out a little bit at that, because he knew that was female masturbation, and said so. After ten minutes of pleading, I managed to convince him that it was okay, that it was just sex, not masturbation since we were both doing it together, and we did it. Except, one thing you need to realize is that even though the orgasm is bigger, and more addictive, it usually takes a girl a lot longer to masturbate than a guy. After Keith finished, he was just sitting there naked, watching me, for, like, twenty minutes. I could tell he was getting super uncomfortable about it, but I was addicted to orgasms by that point, and I just kept going because I needed my climax."
"After that first time Keith didn't say anything or tell on me. But, right away I could tell that he'd figured out that the whole thing was about me, not him. He'd worked out that I'd used him to masturbate without technically masturbating. He could tell I didn't care about him. I was a masturbator, and while I sat there playing with myself as he awkwardly tried to figure out what he should be doing, I was thinking of myself first and him a distant second. And he knew it."
"I pushed my luck. I offered him the same deal a second time, but this time he said no. I told him that I really liked what I saw last time, and if he'd be up for doing it again, I might be willing to help him with some of his homework, like the English essay he was complaining about the last time we met up. That got his attention. So, we worked out a deal where I got to go over to his house and masturbate in front of him twice a week, and I would do his homework for him. And, after that first time, it was just me taking off my clothes. I did it in front of him to pretend it was legit, but any interest he had in me was completely gone after that awkward twenty minutes at the end of our first session. He played video games, or watched TV while I masturbated. I was a perverted, deviant masturbator. This was wrong. He knew it. I knew it. But, I couldn't stop."
"Things went on that way for a while. We both graduated high school. We went to the same university, which wasn't a coincidence. He assured me he'd still need someone to help with his essays and I needed his help more than ever. Everything was fine, until Keith found a girl he liked. If he tried to start a relationship with her then being with me would be cheating. I begged and pleaded with him not to stop, but the most he would agree to was one more session. One more climax before I'd be on my own. Well, what he didn't tell me was that it was going to be the last one I ever had. He set me up, set up a hidden camera for that last session and turned me in for the reward money. If you can provide conclusive footage of a masturbator, the Bureau of Morality offers a five thousand dollar reward. In the end, he used me just as much as I used him. We both got expelled from the university for the cheating, though he was about to fail out anyway his grades were so bad. Even with me doing all his homework, he bombed all the tests. But he kept the reward money and I... You saw what they did to me."
"They strapped me in really tight, I couldn't move at all. You.. you can see it all on the video online."
Cranston raised an eyebrow at her, before she continued.
"But, I guess I'm here because you want to hear about it from me. It was so bad. Like, the worst thing I've ever felt, worse than I thought anything could feel. Think about the most painful thing you've ever been through, then imagine something a hundred times worse. There was this technician, that's what she called herself, a technician, not a doctor or even a nurse. Anyway, she comes in and says ‘I'm the technician who's going to handle your case. Do you have any questions before we get started?' Yeah, ‘handle my case,' as in, chop my clit off. And, questions? What was I going to ask? So, I just said I didn't have any questions, and then she warned me she was going to put headphones in, so she won't get distracted when.. when I start getting loud. Getting loud. Just, the way she said that, as if making me screaming so loud that I couldn't scream any more, as if making me feel like I was going to die, as if making me wish I was actually dying, as if that was no more than her average day at the office."
"Then, the technician started touching me. Touching me in the same way I touched myself, like when I masturbated. I thought maybe the rumors were true and she was going to let me come one last time, but no. That didn't happen. See, when you get turned on, your clit gets bigger, and it's easier for them to.. to do what they do. I was starting to get close, but then, all of a sudden she reaches for this weird-looking tool, and then.. Bang! It's the worst pain I'd ever felt, up to that point. I was screaming my ass off."
"I couldn't really see what she was doing at the time, because I was lying down on the table, but they told me what to expect. That was the circumcision clamp going around my clit. It's this super-tight little metal clamp that cuts off blood flow and exposes the part that.. that comes off. It hurt so much though, I thought maybe she'd gone for a scalpel and chopped it off right then, but no, that was only the clamp."
"Then, it got bad. You heard that right, that wasn't even the bad part. The doctors told me that the biggest risk for a circumcision is the bleeding, so to minimize that.. they use cryotherapy. Liquid nitrogen. The same thing they use to remove warts. But, warts don't have nerves like your clit. It literally freezes your clit off, and it hurts like... like, it took maybe a couple of minutes, that's what it shows on the video, but it felt like an hour. At some point I couldn't scream any more because my voice gave out. I have nightmares that I'm back there, and they're freezing my clit, and it never ended, and it never will end. I didn't even realize when the technician made the cut with the scalpel and took it off. The nerves were gone but I was still feeling it, as if there was something there."
"It was so bad, I didn't even realize when they moved on to the injections at the end. I wasn't really watching, just screaming, and then it was bad in a different way, but just as bad. For voluntary circumcision, the injections are optional, but I didn't get a choice. The main part of the clit outside your body is called the glans, and it's the most sensitive, and it's what they cut off. But, there's this whole huge part inside you that they can't pull out. If they leave that alone, sometimes, and only sometimes, under the most intense conditions, it's possible to climax while having sex. There's a spot in your vagina that's close to the internal part of your clit. Even if the main part of the clit is gone, they say it is sometimes possible to have an orgasm by stimulating that internal spot. But, the injections stop that. Neurotoxin, nerve deadeners, injected straight into the internal part of the clit next to your vagina, um, your butt. To make sure you can't orgasm from anal sex, either."
"Now, well. No orgasms for me. Ever. Guaranteed. Any questions?"
Kayla tentatively raised her hand. "Were you tempted to touch... to commit another crime after it was gone?"
"Yes. I think everyone tries, just to, you know, figure out how their bodies work again, afterwards. Afterwards, they said it was okay to touch, that it was safe. That's the word they used: safe. And, now it just feels like, nothing. Just nothing. Like touching a fingernail."
Kayla raised her hand again. "What does your boyfriend think? I mean, is he glad to know you're... safe? Or..."
Sylvia grimaced. "I don't have anyone right now. It wasn't voluntary, and there's the tattoo, and I have to tell anyone I meet. No takers so far."
This time, Danielle's boyfriend, Mark, had a question. "Hey, is that five grand reward you mentioned still a thing? Like, how does that work?"
Danielle shot him an annoyed glare. Sylvia seemed unsure for a moment, before Cranston answered the question. "Yes, but you need to submit the video yourself to get that reward. There's no conviction without video. If you saw evidence that someone is a masturbator, but it's not video you can still make a report. If a report like that leads to a conviction after video proof is discovered, there's a reward, but it's much smaller, only fifty dollars. However, to prevent abuse of the system, if you file more than three reports without a conviction, you'll go on what we at the office call the"frequent liars list." If that happens, all further reports from you will be ignored. You can upload video or file a report online at www.moralityreports.gov, or in person at any police station."
Addison could see Erin's eyes light up at this information, as her hand shot into the air. "So, can I file a report right now?"
Cranston looked a bit startled. "I suppose. Though it might be better if we spoke after class."
"No, no. I mean everyone knows Kayla over there is a total freak. She asked out a bunch of boys, instead of having them ask her. And that includes Mark even though he's been with Danielle for like, forever. So she's a slut, and she's trying to break up happy couples, I'm sure she's a criminal masturbator too, right? And then there's Danielle, I know she actually did it with Mark, even though they aren't engaged or married or anything so she's gotta be perv, I bet she can't help herself. I get three, so... Oh, Addison! I've seen her making these googly eyes at boys all the time, I'm sure-"
Addison felt her cheeks turn red, in spite of her best effort. Erin was going to report her. They would investigate. They would know. Oh god..
"Woah, woah, woah," Cranston cut Erin off. "You can't just throw accusations around like that. This is very serious. And you don't ‘get three' as you put it. That's the maximum false positives, before we call you a crank. You need serious evidence of deviance for any report you make, more than just, what did you say, googly eyes?"
"Hey," Danielle piped up, not bothering to raise her hand. "Just so you know, I'm Danielle, and nothing Mark and I have tried is the least bit immoral, we looked up the rules. But, I gotta say she's right about Kayla over there, she kept hitting on him. Mark said she pressed herself way too close, and was, like, trying to rub her butt against him. Totally gross."
Danielle glared at Mark. He obviously sensed something was required, so he nodded. Then, he followed up with a less-than enthusiastic "yeah, I guess."
"But, I'm the one reporting her," Erin insisted. "That way, I get the reward. Right?"
Officer Cranston Rubbed his temple in obvious annoyance. "Okay. Okay. First, Kayla?"
Kayla was red as a beet, her eyes closed, her eyes slumped forward on her desk. When the officer called her name, she sat up a little. "Yes?" she squeaked.
"First, be aware that an investigation from a tip of this scope, from a single report, mostly involves scanning through camera footage already on file, nothing particularly invasive. Without more substantial evidence, no one is going to storm into your house to place any new cameras, or even call your parents over such a report. Second, in the unlikely event there is deviant behavior going on, I want you to know that any suspect that gets a voluntary procedure, or even has a voluntary procedure scheduled before we refer a case for prosecution, the case gets dropped. Do you understand?"
"Yes." Kayla's voice was still a squeak.
"Right. Let me bring up the website." Cranston turned the projector back on, switched it to a computer screen, and navigated to the reporting website, and clicked the large "File a Report" button right next to the "Upload a Video" button. Then he pointed to Erin. "You're making the report. First, we enter your information, in case an investigator has any questions about any evidence that you are providing, and so we can contact you with your reward if your report leads to a conviction."
Erin nodded with a big smile."Of course! Erin Wilson, 209 Wilmington Avenue, Crestmont Oklahoma. E-mail is ewilson71@okcrestmontschools.org
Of course Erin would use her school email, the one that the school administration could read any time they wanted, as her primary email address. No one used their school email for anything other than school. No, one that is, except her. Of course. That was so very, very... Erin.
"Alright, and Kayla's information?"
"Kayla Albright, uh I have no idea where her house is. Uh.." Erin turned toward Kayla, then quickly turned back, thinking better of asking a girl her address explicitly so she could report her for masturbation.
"She's in Crestmont. We can just skip the street, it's not essential, the bureau can look it up," Cranston assured her. "Under details, I'm going to say, ‘Witnessed multiple incidents of Miss Albright engaging in inappropriate, aggressive sexual advances towards male classmates. One incident included an attempt to stimulate her genitals through her clothing by pressing and rubbing against the body of a male classmate.' Is that right?"
"Yes," Erin agreed. "Perfect."
"I'll hit submit then, and... there's that. Now, where were we. Ah, yes, any more questions for Sylvia?"
There was a pause, then, very, very slowly Alex raised her hand from the back of the class where she'd retreated.
Alex licked her lips nervously, hesitating when Sylvia called on her.
"Go on," Sylvia said quietly.
"You mentioned the, um, injections. Did you, I mean, was there... did they give you a stimcap?"
Sylvia licked her lips slowly. A look of understanding passed between her and Alex. "Yes," she said quietly.
Many students wore confused expressions.
Cranston motioned at Sylvia. "Why don't you explain what a stimcap is."
"A stimcap is sort of the opposite of the stuff that kills nerves. It's this tiny slow-release capsule that stimulates nerves. Stimulation capsule, stimcap. It isn't painful, it doesn't hurt or anything. But, they put it right down in the middle of the clitoris, away from the surface of the skin. The idea is that a very low, gentle, level of friction down there helps normal women, women with clits have romantic thoughts. But, since my clit is gone, that doesn't happen. The stimcap is supposed to be like that sort of stimulation and makes it so I, uh, so I still have romantic thoughts about men even if I can't have an orgasm."
"So, what you're saying is, it makes you super horny?" Jared called out from the back of the class, without asking for permission to speak.
Ms. Benton gave him a look, and was about to reprimand him, when Sylvia spoke up softly. "It works. Especially when I'm walking fast, or exercising, I can feel more a-, of, of what it's doing. Even though I don't have a boyfriend, I still think about men. A lot. I-"
"Well!" Officer Cranston cut Sylvia off. "We're going to have to leave soon, but there's one exercise I like to do before we wrap up. I have a souvenir for all the ladies here. Sylvia, could you help pass them out?"
Sylvia stood up, retrieved a bag, and started walking down the isles between the desks, passing out the small items inside. She skipped the boys, but made sure every girl got one.
"These are perfectly ordinary, sterilized, all-metal thumb tacks. There's a line of thought among some young deviants. These misguided girls think, 'There's not much difference between a judicial circumcision and a voluntary one, so why bother? I'll just wait until I get caught. In addition to the permanent humiliating record of a convicted masturbator's circumcision, in addition to the tattoo, in addition to the supplementary injections including the stimcap, there's the pain. As Sylvia shared today, it will hurt if you get caught.
"If any of you ladies out there find yourselves contemplating a life of crime, here's what I want you to do: Take that sharp thumb tack and press it into your body, piercing the skin. They've all been sterilized, they're safe. If you're brave, you'll pierce your genitalia. If you're very brave, and you want a realistic taste of what a judicial circumcision means, you'll aim for your clitoris. If, and I'll add, this is perfectly normal, if you find yourself hesitating, if you find you can't bring yourself to do it when it's hovering over your sensitive regions? If that happens, maybe you'll find the motivation to stop your criminal activity before it's not up to you anymore."
Addison eyed the thing on her desk. It was a metal thumb tack, with a clear plastic cap on the sharp end, probably to keep the sterilized tip from getting dirty. She imagined the pain of merely pressing it into her thumb, or the palm of her hand. Ouch. Then she contemplated how it would feel to put it somewhere more sensitive. She shuddered a little bit. Looking around, she saw other members of her class staring at the thumbtacks with similar levels of nervous apprehension.
"And, if you can bring yourself to push in the thumbtack? Well, congratulations, you probably won't be a masturbator. Our department does a survey. In all but two cases, anyone who could bring herself to push the thumbtack between her legs decided that it was something she never wanted to risk experiencing again. On the other hand, over a hundred of these strong, young women immediately volunteered for a free, painless circumcision. This simple exercise is a proven effective crime deterrent. So, now I'm going to ask if there's anyone out there with enough courage to try it in front of the class? It's fine if there are no volunteers, I only get someone to come forward about half of the time. I'll add, you don't have to strip completely, just push it in through your underwear so you aren't flashing the class. Also, it's fine if you find you can't do it at the last moment, that's part of the point. Given the statistics, it's a great way to prove to your class that you aren't going to end up a deviant. Any brave souls out there willing to try?"
The class was very quiet. The officer glanced at Kayla, the obvious potential masturbator in the room, who might have something to prove. She looked away, obviously refusing to volunteer.
"I'll do it." In spite of her terror, perhaps because of her terror, Addison volunteered.
Erin had made the accusation. She couldn't have anyone suspect. She'd do the thing. She'd been trying to quit anyway, maybe this would convince her? Maybe. If she could actually go through with it, that is. She wasn't sure she could, even as she stepped forward.
Addison reached the front of the class, and pulled down her skinny jeans, revealing plain, white cotton panties. "I'm going to sit down to do this, okay?" She asked Cranston.
He nodded. "Of course. And, you'll need this." He handed her another one of the thumb tacks. In her nervousness, Addison had left hers back on her desk when she walked forward.
"Right," she acknowledged. She spread her bare legs, and settled into the chair. She pulled off the plastic cover on the thumb tack. The sharp silver point gleamed. Slowly, she lowered it towards her crotch. At first, she guided the point towards where her clit hid beneath her underwear, but then thought better of it. She shifted the point slightly, so she was pretty sure it would hit to the side, in her labia. No one would know the difference, right? This was still, really, really going to hurt.
Addison gulped. Everyone was watching. This was it. If she did it slowly she knew she'd stop the moment the pain started. She had to do it in one quick push. Then it would be over. She took a deep breath. Then another, psyching herself up. Oh god, oh god, oh god, this was going to hurt, oh god, on one, two...
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Half the school probably heard that.
"FUUU-, ah, sorry, Holy, umm.. AAAAAAAAH, oh my god!" Pulling the thumbtack out wasn't quite as bad as going in, but it was close. She'd gotten her labia, not her clit, but still...
"That was... just... aaah"
"Not something you'd care to repeat?" Cranston asked.
"Never...never.." Addison gasped. A moment later she became conscious of how she was sitting in front of the class, half naked. She reached for her jeans.
"Thank you," Cranston smiled broadly. "Through courage and determination such as yours we strengthen the Social Harmony. I think we should all applaud..."
"Addison," Addison supplied.
"Let's all applaud Addison's courage."
Addison didn't really want the applause or further attention. However, it was rather gratifying that the applause was a bit louder than what was offered to Alex and Meghan earlier. Even Jared joined in. Having the guts to literally stab her pussy evidently inspired some respect.
"Now, we're about done for the day, but I'm going to leave you with one final thought," Cranston told the class. "I've been doing this for over a decade. I'm sorry to say that in all that time, there's never been a graduating high school class that hasn't included at least one convicted masturbator. You heard that right. While no one in your year has been convicted yet, which is not always true, by the way, I'm sad to say it's probably only a matter of time. It is a near statistical certainty that between now and when you graduate, someone in your year, someone you know, is going to get caught masturbating. I would love it if you guys were the first year to buck the trend, but, well, the odds are against it. Just make sure the someone that gets caught isn't you. Don't be the deviant. Preserve, strengthen and embrace our Social Harmony and you'll do well, no matter what choices your peers make. Thank you, and have a wonderful day!"
The next day, Danielle informed Addison that Jared had started a betting pool on Kayla's predicament. People were split pretty much evenly between whether she'd go the voluntary route, or whether the police would catch her masturbating. Based on current bets, odds of her keeping her clit were something like five to one.
Addison felt slightly sick, and declined to participate.
Nothing happened for several months, and most everyone forgot about the report filed in class. The experience of pressing a sharp thumbtack into one of the most sensitive spots left a strong impression on Addison. She even managed to forgo any illegal activity.
Well, for about two weeks. That was a record for her.
Weeks without indulging herself left Addison constantly distracted. She noticed herself developing similar tics to what she noticed in Alex. Based on her question about the stimcap that day in class... she must have gotten one. That left her perpetually horny and desperate, just like Addison was now, only there was no way out for her.
Addison had options, but... should she risk losing that option forever? That thumbtack had hurt, and it hadn't even been her clit. And, what if someone actually listened to Erin's off-hand accusation? What if Erin went back herself, later, and filed a report? What if Cranston pulled up to Addison's house five minutes after she climaxed, sirens blaring, to inform her that she had to say goodbye to her clit?
Somehow, that terrible danger added to her arousal. She imagined the ruggedly handsome officer Cranston, forcefully putting her in cuffs. She imagined him telling her that her clit was coming off, no way to avoid it. But then he would tell her that if she wanted one last chance to have an orgasm with a man inside her, he might grant her that wish. He'd make her get on her knees and beg for it. Then she would suck his cock - naturally he would have a big, thick beautiful cock. She would take him in her mouth just long enough to get him hard. Then he would take her. Hard. He would use every toned muscle in that lean powerful body of his to pound her until she was a whimpering mess. And then she would..she would...
Buried under the thick covers on her bed, Addison came on her hand, breaking her two week streak of good behavior. Oh well. She really, really needed that.
No police car turned down her street. Not that day, or the next. Addison calmed down. There was no way anyone could know. She merely had to be very careful, and not get over-confident.
Nothing changed.
Then, one Tuesday a rumor went around school that the police had caught a masturbator in their year. Kayla hadn't volunteered to be cut, and everyone assumed that the law had finally caught up to her. However, to everyone's surprise, Kayla was at school that day. If the rumor was true, it wasn't her.
So, who was it? Who wasn't there that day? Addison overheard two girls whispering about how it had to be Kayla, and they were going to pick her up after school.
A chill went through Addison's chest. What if they were after her, and were going to pick her up after school? What if somehow, someone knew?
Thankfully, that didn't happen.
The next day, the rumor solidified into fact. Given that concrete video evidence was required the conviction happened literally overnight. There was a jury specifically for cases such as this whose members shifted every few days, but which was convened every day. Footage of the judicial circumcision and of the offense were immediately released to the public, where everyone in school could view it on their phone.
It was Erin.
"You're surprised?" Danielle commented.
Addison shook her head. "I mean... Erin?"
"Fun fact," Danielle said. "Did ya know, any time someone files one of these stupid reports with Officer Crammed-a-stick-up-his-butt and his people, they're always more interested in the reporter than the one being reported? It turns out the holier-than-though dumb-asses who file reports are more likely to be polishing the pearl than the ones they're trying to turn in. There's a fancy psycho-babble term for it. Projection, I think."
Addison blinked. It made sense, in a twisted sort of way. "Think she'll be such a Jesus freak when she gets back?" She asked.
"Oh yeah," Danielle said. "Twice as bad. Now she's a poor sinner who's learned her lesson, just you watch her play that angle up."
Addison wasn't so sure. She watched the video of what they did to Erin. She'd avoided watching any of the videos, even though they were freely available, but this was the first time it was someone she knew. Erin screamed like a dying animal. Her face was twisted, barely recognizable in her agony. How could an experience like that not change a person?
Addison couldn't finish watching Erin's circumcision, even when she muted the audio. Instead she flipped to the evidence video, available right along with the one of her sentence being carried out. She watched Erin laying on her pink frilly bed, in her pink frilly room that had barely changed since she was ten. Her skirt and underwear were around her ankles. Her eyes were closed in an expression of bliss as her hands pulled at her crotch in obvious desperation.
Do I look like that when I... need to relieve some stress? Actually no, Addison, realized, she didn't because she was always smart enough to do it under the covers where nothing and no one could prove what she was doing. Well, unless, they could hear her breathing, or see where her hand was moving under the blanket or... okay maybe it didn't offer that much protection after all.
Which brought her back to the video of Erin, and she wondered: Where was the camera?
Oh. Oh...
Addison had once been in Erin's room. What she could see looked exactly like what she remembered. If her memory served her correctly, and Erin hadn't changed her room, she knew what exactly what was sitting where the camera must have been. It was a giant teddy bear Erin had gotten for her birthday named Gertrude, that said 'I love you!" whenever you hugged it. The camera must have been in its eye.
Gertrude was probably over ten years old now, but there must still be a working camera in her eye. No wonder the Bureau of Morality reassured everyone that they weren't going to barge into anyone's home to install cameras. They didn't have to. The cameras were already there, and had been for over ten years. They were part of the toys and who-knows-what-else that everyone bought whenever they went to the store and voluntarily brought home.
That night, as Addison lay in bed, she wondered whether any stuff in her room had tiny hidden cameras networked to the Bureau of Morality's surveillance network. Obviously, she kept her phone covered, and in her bag. She didn't have any stuffed animals in her room. Her desk was wood, but had shiny, shiny, dark plastic drawer pulls, could there be something in one of those drawer pulls?
But, where would they get power for the cameras, solar cells? Erin's Gertrude bear had the battery, for the voice pack.
How about... light bulbs? Oh shit, that would be crazy, right? But if the lights were off when it was dark, then no power, no cameras. Or, might they have some sort of internal battery that charged up? Oh and... her night light, plugged into her wall. That was always on.
Carefully, Addison got up, and unplugged her night light. She wasn't a kid anymore. No need for a night light. It wasn't suspicious at all to unplug it, was it?
No, she was safe. Probably. Almost certainly. And if they were going to catch her, they already would have. Besides, it had been a few days, and Addison had needs. Very important needs.
She'd be fine. She had always been careful, and she'd keep being careful. Nothing to worry about, right?
Right?