Starbuck said a silent prayer as he bet the last of the cubits on what he prayed was a winning hand. He couldn`t look at Apollo, he knew the captain was glaring at him with eyes filled with anger. But this was a winning hand, he knew it. The only hand that would beat this one was a perfect pyramid, and what were the odds that the dealer had one of those?
Wordlessly he watched as the dealer turned over her last card, it seemed to take an eternity for her to reveal it. "Capstone and perfect pyramid, no winners" she said.
Starbuck`s heart was suddenly in his stomach.
"Home, now," Apollo ordered between clinched teeth.
Starbuck started to say something, but Apollo had immediately gotten up and headed for the door. They walked in silence to the shuttle bay, and the flight home seemed even more silent. Apollo wouldn`t even look at him, he just kept his eyes on the shuttle pilot`s back, his jaw tight and rigid.
When they landed and debarked the shuttle, Apollo grabbed his arm and pulled him to lift, then to their quarters, where he finally spoke. His voice was filled with anger. "Get in the bedroom and strip, I`ll be there in a centon."
Silently Starbuck obeyed, he knew he was in big trouble this time. From the bedroom he could hear Apollo opening the kitchen drawers and slamming them shut. "I`ve seen him mad, but never this mad. Sagan it was just a card game and I only lost 100 cubits this time; it`s not like it was a whole secton`s pay," Starbuck said to himself.
Naked, Starbuck sat on the bed, wondering what Apollo was up to and what he had in mind for Starbuck`s punishment. Oh Starbuck knew Apollo was going to punish him for losing all those cubits; he had threatened to earlier in the evening before they left.
Then Apollo entered, carrying a chair from the kitchen. Without saying a word, he placed the chair beside the bed, its legs making a loud thump as they hit the floor. Then, without so much as looking at Starbuck, he turned and left the room. He returned less than a centon later carrying a number of objects.
Starbuck didn`t like the look of this at all. "Apollo what are you going to do to me?"
Apollo didn`t answer, he just placed the objects on the bedside table, then walked over to the chair and sat down. His teeth were clenched together when he spoke. "Come here, now."
Starbuck tried to swallow the lump in his throat, but it was too big. Dragging his feet, he slowly made his way to his angry lover`s side.
"Lay over my lap and put your hands on the floor." When Starbuck just stood there he added, "*now*" more forcefully.
Quickly Starbuck did as he was told; the position put his bare butt at an angle perfect for what he knew Apollo had in mind.
Apollo placed his right hand on the small of Starbuck`s back, then lifted his left and brought it down on the round globes of Starbuck`s cheeks, right at the crack where the two cheeks met. The sound of the connection echoed through the room and Starbuck jumped from the impact.
"OWWWWWWWWW"
"Quiet," was all Apollo said as the punishment continued.
Apollo gave Starbuck's rump five more hard spanks, two to each round cheek and then one more to the middle. Then he sat and admired the red marks his hand had left. He then gave the firm globes and gentle caress before saying, "Now go to the table and bring me the small wooden spoon."
Starbuck stood up quickly. "Nooo, you can`t be serious."
"Do as you're told."
Apollo smiled to himself when Starbuck went to retrieve the object, quickly putting his stern look back on when his lover returned with the spoon in his shaking hand. He was enjoying this immensely. "Good boy, now back into position."
Starbuck groaned and gritted his teeth as he obeyed.
Apollo then proceeded to use the wooden spoon on the spot where the legs and buttocks meet, the sitting spot. He wanted his lover to have a reminder of this night, and he would have a very big reminder before the night was through. After he had given each of Starbuck`s upper thighs six hard smacks with the spoon he said, "Those were for the original punishment, but because you didn`t obey my order right away I`m afraid I have to punish you for that as well."
That said, Apollo brought the spoon down on each cheek twice. Starbuck was now in tears. Again Apollo gave Starbuck a gentle caress before telling him to stand. "Now I want the large wooden spoon." he ordered as he tossed the small spoon onto the bed.
Without a word Starbuck retrieved the larger spoon, but hesitated in giving it to Apollo. The hesitation angered Apollo even more and he grabbed both the spoon and Starbuck`s arm, all but throwing the blond over his lap, causing Starbuck to yelp in surprise. "Either you're not a fast learner or you're secretly enjoying this."
Starbuck cried out as Apollo then brought the spoon down even harder on his sore red cheeks, six times on each side this time.
" That was for the hesitation, and this is for losing my money."
Starbuck screamed "No no no" as his sitting spot was once again warmed up, this time ten times on each side.
When next he was told to stand, he was sent for the hairbrush. Starbuck didn`t say anything or hesitate this time, but quickly retrieved the item and laid himself over Apollo`s lap. "You still have the brush in your hand."
"Sorry." Starbuck squeaked as he reached up and handed it to Apollo.
Shaking his head, Apollo said, "You keep making reasons for me to punish you." Apollo snickered as he ran the brush`s bristles over Starbuck`s red rump.
"Oh, please, Apollo, don`t use that side of the brush." Starbuck moaned
"Hey now, would I do that? Of course not, I love you too much to do that to you." Apollo then turned the brush over and paddled Starbuck`s upper thighs with it.
When the brush came down for the tenth time Starbuck suddenly cried out, "Stop please stop it, I can`t take any more."
Slapping each of Starbuck`s cheeks twice, Apollo said, "I will decide when you have had enough, and when it`s time for your punishment to end."
The grin was wiped off Apollo`s face when a hand suddenly grabbed his and he looked up into the angry eyes of his father.
"It ends right now, *Captain*." Adama said as he pulled the brush from Apollo`s hand and tossed it onto the bed with the wooden spoons. Gently he helped Starbuck stand, giving the younger man a tight hug and pushing the hair out of his eyes. He then gave the Lieutenant a soft peck on the cheek and helped him to lay down on his stomach on the large bed, turning him so he was laying sideways, with his head facing the chair.
Turning to Apollo, Adama then said, "Now as for you young man," as he sat down on the bed beside Starbuck.
Apollo was not prepared for what happened next and suddenly found himself laying over his father`s knee with his pants around his ankles, his bare butt facing Starbuck. Starbuck gasped at the Commander`s lightening quick reflexes, but really didn`t mind getting the upclose view of his lover`s naked butt.
Adama then picked up the small spoon, and asked " Is this the first thing you used on poor Starbuck here?"
"Yes sir," Apollo answered quickly, his voice quivering.
Smiling Adama then gave Apollo two fast slaps with the spoon, causing his son to yelp out in pain. Adama then proceeded to turn Apollo`s buttocks into a nice, beautiful bright red. Apollo let his tears flow out silently, remembering that his father rewarded crying out and sobbing with more paddling.
While Apollo was receiving his punishment, Starbuck laid silently on the bed watching, not daring to say a word to the Commander. When still a teenager and living in Adama`s household, he, too, had received paddlings from the older man, and knew too well what would happen if he dared to intervene.
After a loving caress Adama picked up the larger spoon. Apollo sensed that his father had changed objects and tried to struggle out his grasp, but the young man immediately discovered that his father was just as strong now as he was when Apollo was a young boy receiving a paddling for some now forgotten misdeed.
"I`m sure you remember what struggling gets you, young man,"Adama stated, trying not to chuckle.
Apollo immediately stopped his struggles, and breathed deeply waiting for the paddling to start again. He didn`t have to wait long and soon felt the large spoon slam into each upper thigh, turning his sitting spot a brighter red than his buttocks. This time he cried out, and did something that made his father more angry than anything else.
"What was that you just did?"
"Nothing father, I was just moving my legs into a better position." Apollo sobbed
"Don`t you lie to me boy, you stamped your feet."
"No I didn`t ."
"Don`t you ever stamp your feet during a pun ish ment a gain "
Apollo`s sitting spot now felt like it was on fire, but Apollo still wouldn`t stop. " Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow." each ow was accompanied by a stamp of feet.
Adama sighed in disbelieve. Starbuck tried hard to stifle a giggle. "What a baby," Adama remarked as he gave Apollo two more slaps with the spoon before moving on to the hairbrush.
As the Commander paddled his son`s butt cheeks with the brush, each slap of the brush is accompanied by a syllable. "Now, if, I, ever, find, out, that, you, have, spanked, Star, buck, this, hard, again, you, will, find, out, what, the, bam, boo, switch, feels, like."
Starbuck couldn`t hold back his snickers this time as Apollo stamped his feet again.
Sighing deeply Adama allowed his son to stand, then hugged him tightly.
"Now, you mind my words and I won`t have to punish you like that again. I don`t enjoy doing this you know, but sometimes you need it. Starbuck here may have done something to deserve being punished but you took it just a little too far and when I saw that happening I had to interfere and put a stop to it and show you just how he was feeling. Now lay down on the bed beside him and I`ll put some soothing ointment on the two of you."
Both men sighed in relief as the ointment cooled their heated buttocks, and they soon fell asleep holding hands and Adama allowed them a few days off so they could heal in the privacy and comfort of their quarters. However, only two sectons later Adama was forced to make good his threat of the bamboo switch, but that`s another story."
~~FIN~~~