Diana and the Tentboy

by Crinckly-Mack

As I related in "My Life...", after I had won my scholarship, I became something of a "celebrity" and danced with my beloved Diana. I decided to try and invite her for a walk so that I could explain in private why I had stared at her, to say sorry and to ask for forgiveness, so that we could become friends. I cycled round to her family's house on the first afternoon of half term. In my saddlebag I took my red cloak and hood, to weaken myself if she wanted to punish me during the walk by defeating me in a fight, before forgiving me. I parked my bike, and rang the front door bell, expecting to be met by her mother; it was Diana herself! I was dumbstruck! "What are you doing here, Starer?" she asked sharply, but then, softening "What do you want?". I gabbled "I wanted to invite you for a walk so I could explain my staring and say sorry for it". "Oh, you'd better come in then". "No, no, I don't want to trouble your family". "Don't worry - my Dad's at work, and my Mum's taken my brothers and sister into town, shopping. There's only me here". "Will my bike be alright here?" I asked. "Better if you wheel it through to our back patio". She disappeared and came back by the side gate. I pushed my bike through, and, trembling somewhat, took the cloak and hood out, and went into the kitchen.

"Now, you were going to explain your staring at me". "Yes. To begin with, you're one of the prettiest girls in the school". "Thank you". "But when you wear your red mackintosh, I think you're the most beautiful girl in the world!" There, I'd said it! Diana got up from her chair and disappeared into the hall, re-appearing moments later - in her mackintosh!!

"This mackintosh?"

"Yes".

"But it's only a mackintosh, to keep me dry in the rain".

"I still think you look wonderful, and I envy you so much when you wear it! I want to be your friend! I want to say sorry for my staring, and ask for your foregiveness - I know how rude I've been, and how much I deserve to be punished".

"I see".

Then she pointed at my cloak: "What's that? Is it made of mackintosh?"

I put on my cloak to show it to her and explained about my cloak and hood, how I'd used them to fight a younger boy without being accused of being a coward or cissy and how, if we went for a walk, I thought she could punish me for staring, by defeating me in a fight.

"Hmmm", she said, "you must really love mackintosh - wait there", and she again left the kitchen.

When she returned, she produced a mackintosh she said had been passed on from an older cousin to wear when she'd grown into it, but which was currently too big. It was mid-brown in colour with a very dark brown rubber lining. She aked me to remove my cloak and then dressed me in the brown mackintosh. It was very long on me, right down to the tops of my short socks, and very baggy on me; being double-breasted, it could be buttoned up "the boys' way", and she had to fold the cuffs quite a way back so that they ended at my wrists. The skirt was very, very full, and there was a vent in the middle of the large rear pleat.

I was of course "in heaven"!

She then put my cloak back on me and arranged the reversed hood so it hang down my front, ready to be lifted up and tied over my face to smother me. "Yes, I think I can punish you very readily in a fight - and I do want to punish you before I think of forgiving you".

We left the house, went through a gate into the adjacent field, and followed a foopath round to the corner of the spinney where David and I had our defeats in the leaf fights. We stopped, and she put up her hood and tied the strings tightly. Then she draped the brown hood over my head - it covered most of my face apart from my nose and mouth, lifted up the red hood to complete my smothering and tied its strings in the nape of my neck. "I'm going to walk away and then charge you" she said, and then called out loudly "I'm going to get you, starer!" Putting her hands on my shoulders she drove me backwards but only for a few helpless steps before I fell to the ground. As my back slammed into the ground, I felt my legs kick out, and the folds of the mackintosh fly up into the air, before falling crumpled to the grass as she dropped onto my chest and pinned my wrists to the ground either side of my head. "Down with you, starer; down with you Mackintosh-boy!" she snarled.

I lay helplessly for what seemed an age, until I heard her start to talk to someone.

"What a super pointed yellow tent. Is it rubber? Does it keep you snug and dry in the rain?"

"Yes. I'm a tent-boy. Will you please call me that?"

"Of course, Tentboy, and I am Diana. I'm punishing this mackintosh-boy because he always stares at me when I wear my mackintosh".

"May I call you Mackintosh-Diana, and honour your victory with tentbows?"

"Oh, yes, please!".

I could only vaguely hear the slapping noises of the tent, but his chants of "Tentboy tentbows to Mackintosh-Diana!" almost drove me mad with aroused excitement.

After what seemed to me an eternity of tentbows, he must have stopped, because I heard Diana ask if she could stand in his tent and return the honour done her. I struggled to my feet, lowered the reversed hood, and folded back the brown hood so I could watch, as Diana in the tent bowed repeatedly to the Tentboy, chanting "Tentbow to Tentboy from Mackintosh-Diana".

I turned to the Tentboy and asked him if I could stand in his tent to tentbow to Diana?

"No" he said, but then.."We shall fight. If you win, you may have my tent for all afternoon to tentbow to Diana, but, if you lose, you will stand, hooded, in the tent all afternoon, while I enjoy the afternoon with her!" Diana clapped her hands in pleasure - she was delighted to have two boys fight over her. The Tentboy charged at me, and down I went once more with legs and mackintosh flailing. He was stronger, of course than Diana and was able to trap my arms under his knees to free up his hands to smother me in the reversed hood and tie it tightly in place. I had no chance and lay there as Diana continued her tentbowing to a triumphant Tentboy. Eventually I had to submit and was pulled to my feet and the tent was put over me. "You will speak to no-one" ordered Tentboy, "except to say "Mackintoshboy is hooded in a tent"! Do you understand?" "Yes" I wimpered, and not knowing if I could be heard I obeyed whenever another child approached me.

At last I was released. The Tentboy left us and Diana and I began to walk back to her house. When I asked what they had done together, she said "Are you jealous? Well, I'm not going to tell you, except that I enjoyed it - a lot! Not knowing is part of your punishment, but now I think I have punished you enough. We can now be friends and you shall be my regular dancing partner". When we reached her house, everyone else was still out, so I was able to return the brown mackintosh, pack my cloak and hood away, and cycle away without needing to give any embarrassing explanation of what was, in reality, a truly wonderful afternoon, despite, or, perhaps, because of, my repeated humiliations.

Crinckly-Mack.

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