Hansgu.9712
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Hi everyone, I’m a long-time lurker on this sub and have had some time recently to have a go myself for the first time, so any suggestions/improvements let me know.
This story is going to be quite a long one so warning in advance. I have taken inspiration from some of my favourite stories/series, especially Tysuio’s Tickle Shoppe series and Viewmaster’s Castle series. This first part is just a build-up and won’t have a lot of action in it so bear with, consider it a prologue.
I won’t particularly describe the appearance of the characters in the series so that everyone can imagine them how they want to.
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It was a warmer summer morning in a countryside town where a gentle breeze flowed through the annual summer fair. A group of 4 friends explored the festival offerings, from food stalls to rides, to games and contests. Sarah, Kara, Emilia and Jessica hadn’t been to the fair in years and had decided that with the nice weather, it was worth a visit to see what had changed. Friends since childhood the women, now in their early 30s, were eager to have a relaxed day away from the responsibilities of life, children and partners.
They had spent the start of the day exploring the sites and trying some of the food, always following the orders of Sarah, the unelected leader of the group. The eldest of the group at 35, Sarah was the organiser of all their meet-ups, and some would have called her the ‘bossy’ one. Jess, with her bubbly and flamboyant personality, was always happy to follow suit with Sarah’s suggestions. Emilia, the youngest of the group at 30, was always viewed as the shy type and had never quite grown out of it. She often had a love-hate relationship with the personalities of Sarah and Jess. Kara on the other hand was the tough tomboy type who had taken a week of Jess’ nagging to make her agree to make her return to the fair, still slightly annoyed about making last minute childcare arrangements.
As they made there was around the fair weaving through crowds, they recognised the familiar faces of stall owners who had been around since their university days. They moved into the contest area of the fair where people were completing obstacle courses, archery, and races amongst other things. Suddenly, a sound hit the ears of the 4 friends which made them all stop. Sarah seemed attracted to it, Jess smiled cheerfully, Emilia seemed puzzled and Kara impatient.
“Who the hell is that?” Kara asked, wanting to get Sarah’s plan for the childish fair over and done with.
“Well, it’s someone having a good time by the sounds of it, silly.” Jess responded gleefully.
“That doesn’t sound like they are having a good time, it sounds more like screaming” Emilia’s whispered voice said, still puzzled at the sound.
“God Emilia speak up, the quiet mouse voice doesn’t work here. And you Kara, at least look like you’re enjoying the day. The weather is lovely and it’s been ages since we did something like this.” Sarah replied, whilst Kara sarcastically stuck her tongue out.
The four women remained in place for a minute until Jess spoke up.
“Well should we go have a look”
“I thought we were heading to over there to the Balloon Buster challenge, that’s what Sarah said” Emilia replied.
“I agree, change of plan. We can’t come to the fair and skip through all the other contests, that’s near the end of the fairground. We’ll go over here first.” Sarah instructed.
The rest of the group followed Sarah’s lead as the sounds of laughter grew louder over the other music and shouting of the fair. They had all begun to realise that the fair had grown since they were last here with lots of new rides and contests popping up. They approached an area of the fair which was separated from the rest by a temporary colourful wooden wall, the entrance way sign stating, ‘Adults Summer Zone – No Children Allowed’.
“Now that’s the first thing which sounds good to me today” Kara stated. Jess and Sarah laughed in response, they to themselves happy to have a well-deserved child-free day. Emilia smirked, although childcare wasn’t an issue for her, she had to smile at the tomboy’s sudden excitement. As they waked through the gate and past security, there was an array of bars serving alcohol, a large tent for ‘Pole Dancing Contest’ and many other stalls and stages showcasing many different things. The laughter continued to grow louder until they reached a stage that had attracted a crowd. On the stage there several staff members in bright yellow t-shirts, shorts and socks covered in smiley faces, as well as three other girls who were all involved in tickling. ‘Tickling? I wasn’t expecting that’ Sarah thought to herself. Jess smiled at the contagious laughter whilst Emilia was now more puzzled then ever. Kara’s face had turned white, now regretting that she had entered the Adult Zone.
All four viewed the scene in front of them to work out what was going on. In the middle of the stage, two girls were in the middle of the tickle fight. One in a set of red clothes appeared to be in their mid-20s whilst the other in green was in their early 40s Jess had guessed. The girl to the side had a screen above her head to provide more information. ‘Abby – Age 19. Loser of Round 1’. She was desperately pleading as two staff members tickled her entire body. Suddenly Jess’ eyes focused back on the two women as louder screams filled the air. The girl in red had managed to get the other women’s feet in an arm lock and was frantically scribbling her short nails all over the poor women’s soles. This continued for a minute or so before the women in green screamed out “GREEN! GREEN! GREEN!”. Suddenly, a staff member in yellow approached the centre of the stage and congratulated the girl in red.
“Congrats to Libby, lets give her a clap. Katherine, unfortunately for you, you have lost the second round to your daughter. Please follow my friend into the set of stocks next to your other daughter. Maybe you should have tag-teamed with Abby on Libby instead of the other way around.” Katherine, exhausted from the fight, hesitantly made her way to a set of stocks next to Abby and a screen lit up above it. ‘Katherine – Age 43. Loser of Round 2’. Like her younger daughter, her feet her locked in a set of stocks and toetied, her arms we cuffed above her head. Libby had returned from backstage in her normal clothing. The staff member spoke again as the two sets of stocks were wheeled off. “Well everyone that’s the end of our morning session of the Fight Contest over. Libby is the champion of both rounds over her younger sister and mum and those two are now being wheeled away to our Tent of Laughter to face their punishment. As I said at the start, the loser of Round 1 will receive a punishment of 2 hours of non-stop tickling, and Katherine, the loser of Round 2 will face 1 hour. I’m sure Libby will be more then thrilled to join in on dishing out the punishment and as mentioned, here is the £50 reward as winner. And now to you guys, thanks for watching and if you wish to join in and have a go making them suffer, I mean laugh oops, please head over to the tent and make a small donation with our staff. A reminder that 50% of donations go to a local charity and the rest to our running costs.”
‘Two hours! Silly girl’ Sarah thought to herself. Jess looked on as members of the crowd began to shuffle their way to the tent. She was ticklish and wouldn’t imagine herself being tickled in a set of stocks.
“Well should we go in and have a go at them ourselves” Jess said playfully.
“I think so, if you can’t handle a bit of tickling then you deserve it don’t you. Besides, my plan for the day has already taken a detour ”. Sarah agreed.
“No! Absolutely not, that poor girl and her mother will be hysterical now, it’s torture!” Kara abruptly stated. At that moment the laughter of two voice began to echo out of the tent before dissolving back into the chorus of laughter already in it.
“Exactly Kara, but we won’t be locked in those stocks so it’s nothing to worry about. And as you said, this fair is childish so it’s only a bit of childish fun, not torture. Emilia, don’t you agree with me and Sarah?” Jess playfully taunted Kara.
“Erm I don’t know” Emilia blushed now centre of attention. “I suppose I’d prefer to be the giver rather than the receiver”.
“There we are, majority vote, let’s go.” Sarah declared, once again in leader mode. She began to walk towards the tent when suddenly the staff member on stage began to speak again.
“Hi again everyone its Leah. So as its approaching 11:30, we’re almost ready for our next contest, the 4 Endurers Challenge.” The female staff behind her began to role 4 sets of identical stocks and secure them to the stage. “The only issue is that we need four volunteers from you guys in the crowd. You can be a family, a group of friends, or even strangers willing to see who has what it takes. A reminder that there will be one loser and the winners will all receive cash prizes. If you’re interested, come speak with us at the side of the stage.”
Sarah looked back at the girls behind her, now interested in the opportunity for a little fun. Jess gleefully continued to smile as she had all day, Emilia avoiding eye contact with anyone as ever and Kara looked like she had seen a ghost, already guessing what was on Sarah’s mind.
“Well girlies what do we think?”
“Absolutely Not! No! I agreed to come today to see you guys again and re-live our childhood, not to be tortured.” Kara shot back.
“We’re at the fair, we are reliving our childhood Kara,” said Sarah.
“No, you know what I mean, this whole area wasn’t here last time so lets just go play some hook-a-duck or something.” Kara argued.
“Oh stop being such a spoil…”
“NO!”
“Oh come on… We’re all in our thirties now when was the last time we ever did anything remotely like this. Surely 4 girls in their thirties can handle a little bit of tickling”. Sarah said, making chicken gestures towards Kara.
“I can’t remember the last time I was tickled, sure why not. At least three of us will get some money to spend for the rest of the day.” Jess pondered.
“And the loser?” Kara challenged.
“Well they end up in the Tent of Smiles or whatever it was” Sarah laughed.
“Tent of Laughter” Emilia corrected meekly. Always the quiet but brainy one of the group, even she had to admit that Kara’s situation was funny compared to the tough tomboy persona she usually had.
“And what about you Em, give us your thoughts”. Sarah questioned.
Em. Sarah only said their nicknames now when she wanted something. Em, K, Jessy. Emilia once again blushed. “I don’t know, I can’t remember the last time I was tickled either, but I was certainly ticklish when I was tickled. I’m not sure I could be in one of those chairs, I’d die”
“Oh you’ll be fine, surely that freak you used to date tickled you. Anyway, you’ll die of embarrassment in front of that crowd before you are tickled anyway. Tell you what I will tell you my worst spot and then if I lose, all of you know where to go for. It’s my feet.” Sarah responded, Jess was along with it and as much as she sometimes hated Em’s shyness, she could be swayed if all the group did something. Em nodded and then returned to staring at the sky.
“Em! Right, those girls were having their feet tickled, I hate that. Hate it”. Kara said in disbelief. ‘I knew we all have our own separate lives after university but my god what has got into these girls. It’s me v them. Well two of them anyway, Em won’t speak up now…’.
“Tell you what, the girl said that the three winners get a cash prize. Whatever it is if both me and you survive and Jess or Em lose, I’ll give you 10% of my prize as well Kara.”
“50%”
“25%, I’m ticklish myself you know I’m not just doing this for the fun”. Sarah compromised.
“Deal, but I swear to God if you lose, I will make sure you regret it”. Kara replied reluctantly.
Sarah led the group over the side of the stage where Leah was stood speaking with another member of staff. Leah smiled as she saw the group approach and spoke up.
“So you guys are here for the 4 Endurers Challenge then” Leah said in a cheerful, warming manner. “How about we go backstage, discuss the details and sign the contracts.”
“Contracts?” Emilia questioned, her clever-person head back on.
“All part of the process to protect both us and you, nothing to worry about. We write it as simply as possible, no jargon.”
The girls followed Leah backstage to a campervan where Leah handed them each a copy of the contract. She explained the rules to them that it would consist of two rounds. Round 1 would be two sets of the friends going against each other in an endurance challenge. All four girls were to be tied into a set of stocks they had seen on stage before and the tickling would begin at the same time. One of them would be going against another and the first one to say their safe word would lose out of that pair. The two winners would be released, and the two losers would receive a punishment before proceeding to Round 2. The girls all listened on with a mixture of thoughts and feelings.
Jess looked around the room, still wanting to have a go but each word making her think again. ‘Sarah looks up to it, of course she does it’s her idea. I would love to see her locked up and tortured, that would be a sight. Kara looks like she’s about to faint, well she made the deal hehe. Em, well its Em, I wouldn’t expect anything different from her but avoiding eye contact and staring stoically at the contact’.
“So this punishment for the two losers, how long is that?” Kara asked.
“Yeah, she’ll need to know so she can prepare herself” Sarah joked. Kara gave her daggers.
Leah smiled. “I can’t say, it’s an automatic forfeit of 10 minutes and then it’s the combined times of the two pairs. Out of the two losers whoever gives up first will have the combined time of the longest-lasting pair and vice versa.” The girls all seemed shocked. “But as it’s just the first round, we allow the two losers to choose a spot which is off-limits for the punishment”
‘Well, that’s a relief, I’d hate my sides to be tickled for over 10 minutes. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea’ Jess though. ‘This is a literal nightmare, and it hasn’t even started, I’m going to kill Sarah after this regardless of if I win’ Kara thought. Sarah looked around the room in a playful manner, yes, she was ticklish but even if she lost Round 1 she could survive 10 minutes and then beat Kara in Round 2.
“And Round 2?” Emilia mumbled. Leah looked over to her as she hadn’t heard.
“She asked about Round 2. Sorry about our boring friend, you can tell she is the sensible one of the groups. Did you know that she once read all of the T&C for Netflix once.” Jess said playfully to Leah’s amusement.
“So Round 2 yes, following the forfeit the two losers will then go against each other in a set of endurance challenges targeting certain parts of the body. They will get points for the number of minutes they survive without saying their safe word and the winner is release. The loser then receives the final punishment. And before you ask, I will warn you it is intense. As this is the main event, the loser will remain in the Hall of Laughter for the remainder of the day and will be tickled by our staff members and the three winners if you wish to. It’s almost midday so that will leave about 7 hours once we have finished the initial rounds. Oh, to ease any worries, it’s all female only” Leah said as if it was a routine speech.
The four girls looked around, all now contemplating. ‘Wow 7 hours, that’s intense even for me’ Sarah though. ‘7! 7! These smiley guys are loonies I cannot lose this, or my feet are done for’ Kara thought in horror. ‘Maybe I should have sided with Kara, even Sarah looks abit regretful now’ Jess contemplated. Emilia continued to stare at the contract thinking methodically ‘This is crazy. Kara’s definitely in Round 2 that’s without saying. Jess I’m not sure, she might find it fun. Sarah, I don’t think I’ve ever seen her get tickled, but she did say she was’.
“So girls, here’s a pen for each of you. Once you’ve signed, there is a colour-coded set of cloths for each of you to change into. The colour of the set will match your safe word throughout the contest. Then we’ll get started.” Sarah signed straight away, her initial regrets now replaced with her competitive spirit.
“Em, why are you reading through it, does she look like a criminal?” Sarah stated whilst Leah smiled. Blushing once again, Emilia signed the papers before she could talk herself out of it. It was more out of the peer-pressure of Sarah and Leah looking at her than her actually wanting the prize money, maybe she wasn’t that ticklish anymore she hoped. Jess looked around and once Emilia had signed, she took a deep breath and signed the contract. She was hoping that they would focus on anywhere but her sides, she might be able to outlive the others in that case. Kara continued to look horrified until Sarah waved her purse at her to remind her of their deal. Kara signed, already regretting her decision, but she needed the money however much it was, for the holiday she was saving up for her family. ‘Either that or I’ll need a holiday to recover from the punishment anyway if I lose…’
When they had all signed, Leah lead them to a changing room and a set of lockers for their personal stuff. She explained that the clothes were to expose as much of their skin as possible and make it fair on everyone. She handed each of the girls a matching set of a sports bra and shorts and told them that they can leave their shoes and socks on. Emilia’s was black, Jess’ green, Kara’s white and Sarah’s red. Jess gulped ‘Green. Is that a bad omen? Wasn’t one of the losers before in Green?’. All four girls returned in their outfits to the backstage area and were led out onto the stage by another member of the team.
Already on stage was Leah, standing in front of the 4 sets of stocks. She addressed the waiting crowd, all eager for the contest to start.
“Welcome back everyone, we have found our 4 Endurers ready to take on the challenge. Who will win and which unlucky soul will find themselves in the Tent of Laughter.” The crowd cheered in response to Leah as the girls arrived on stage. “So here we have Emilia, Kara, Sarah and Jess so please give them all a round of applause”. Leah went on to explain the rules of the first round to the crowd as she had to the girls backstage. Emilia’s face was bright red as she felt a million eyes all over her, Kara searching the crowd for who she would kill if they touched her feet, Jess as gleeful as ever. “Now we need to choose who will compete against who, and to make this fair I have put their names in a hat. Can we all welcome back Libby onto the stage everyone.” Libby returned onto the stage with a smile on her face.
“So Libby, how’s it going with mum and sis in the tent?”
“Amazing! Mum’s feet are currently being tortured by feathers, and my sister is going crazy”. Libby then went on to pick each girl’s name out of the hat. Kara v Jess and Emilia v Sarah. Both Sarah and Emilia sighed as they realised that they weren’t drawn against Kara. Jess on the other hand felt a bit of relief. Libby then gleefully skipped back to the Tent of Laughter to continue where she left off.
Each of the girls were directed to a set of stocks and sat down. Emilia next to Sarah, Kara next to Jess. The stocks around the feet we closed over them by a staff member, a belt was placed over their hips to reduce movement, and their arms were raised high above their heads, only allowing for a small amount of movement in their arms. ‘I need to get out! Why have I done this’ Kara panicked. Sarah sat confidently ready for the challenge, whilst Jess prayed to herself that she’d soon be out with a prize in hand. A staff member then sat at the base of each stock and introduced themselves to the girl sat in them. Natalie with Jess, Georgia with Emilia, Megan with Kara and then Leah went up to Sarah.
“I always love to pick the person I’m with in Round 1, we always have loads of fun”. Leah said with a mischievous grin. Sarah gulped realising that they would start with the feet. For the first time all day, Emilia saw Sarah’s face truly horrified. Each of the 4 staff members began to remove the girl’s footwear, Jess and Sarah’s sandals were easily removed much to their discomfort, the soles of their feet now facing the crowd. Emilia shivered as Georgia slowly untied her white sneakers and remove her white socks. Kara looked pleadingly at Megan as she teased Kara whilst removing her leather boots, her bare feet now exposed to the warm air. Each girl was more concerned as their toes were gently tied to the stocks, limiting any movement.
Another staff member went to the microphone and began to countdown with the crowd.
“Five.. Four… Three… Two.. One… Go!”
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This was my first go at a story and was a bit longer than I thought so I think there will be a few parts all around 3 main ‘chapters’. Once again, any feedback is very welcome.
So who do we think is going into Round 2?
This story is going to be quite a long one so warning in advance. I have taken inspiration from some of my favourite stories/series, especially Tysuio’s Tickle Shoppe series and Viewmaster’s Castle series. This first part is just a build-up and won’t have a lot of action in it so bear with, consider it a prologue.
I won’t particularly describe the appearance of the characters in the series so that everyone can imagine them how they want to.
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Summer Fair Nightmare (Part 1a)
It was a warmer summer morning in a countryside town where a gentle breeze flowed through the annual summer fair. A group of 4 friends explored the festival offerings, from food stalls to rides, to games and contests. Sarah, Kara, Emilia and Jessica hadn’t been to the fair in years and had decided that with the nice weather, it was worth a visit to see what had changed. Friends since childhood the women, now in their early 30s, were eager to have a relaxed day away from the responsibilities of life, children and partners.
They had spent the start of the day exploring the sites and trying some of the food, always following the orders of Sarah, the unelected leader of the group. The eldest of the group at 35, Sarah was the organiser of all their meet-ups, and some would have called her the ‘bossy’ one. Jess, with her bubbly and flamboyant personality, was always happy to follow suit with Sarah’s suggestions. Emilia, the youngest of the group at 30, was always viewed as the shy type and had never quite grown out of it. She often had a love-hate relationship with the personalities of Sarah and Jess. Kara on the other hand was the tough tomboy type who had taken a week of Jess’ nagging to make her agree to make her return to the fair, still slightly annoyed about making last minute childcare arrangements.
As they made there was around the fair weaving through crowds, they recognised the familiar faces of stall owners who had been around since their university days. They moved into the contest area of the fair where people were completing obstacle courses, archery, and races amongst other things. Suddenly, a sound hit the ears of the 4 friends which made them all stop. Sarah seemed attracted to it, Jess smiled cheerfully, Emilia seemed puzzled and Kara impatient.
“Who the hell is that?” Kara asked, wanting to get Sarah’s plan for the childish fair over and done with.
“Well, it’s someone having a good time by the sounds of it, silly.” Jess responded gleefully.
“That doesn’t sound like they are having a good time, it sounds more like screaming” Emilia’s whispered voice said, still puzzled at the sound.
“God Emilia speak up, the quiet mouse voice doesn’t work here. And you Kara, at least look like you’re enjoying the day. The weather is lovely and it’s been ages since we did something like this.” Sarah replied, whilst Kara sarcastically stuck her tongue out.
The four women remained in place for a minute until Jess spoke up.
“Well should we go have a look”
“I thought we were heading to over there to the Balloon Buster challenge, that’s what Sarah said” Emilia replied.
“I agree, change of plan. We can’t come to the fair and skip through all the other contests, that’s near the end of the fairground. We’ll go over here first.” Sarah instructed.
The rest of the group followed Sarah’s lead as the sounds of laughter grew louder over the other music and shouting of the fair. They had all begun to realise that the fair had grown since they were last here with lots of new rides and contests popping up. They approached an area of the fair which was separated from the rest by a temporary colourful wooden wall, the entrance way sign stating, ‘Adults Summer Zone – No Children Allowed’.
“Now that’s the first thing which sounds good to me today” Kara stated. Jess and Sarah laughed in response, they to themselves happy to have a well-deserved child-free day. Emilia smirked, although childcare wasn’t an issue for her, she had to smile at the tomboy’s sudden excitement. As they waked through the gate and past security, there was an array of bars serving alcohol, a large tent for ‘Pole Dancing Contest’ and many other stalls and stages showcasing many different things. The laughter continued to grow louder until they reached a stage that had attracted a crowd. On the stage there several staff members in bright yellow t-shirts, shorts and socks covered in smiley faces, as well as three other girls who were all involved in tickling. ‘Tickling? I wasn’t expecting that’ Sarah thought to herself. Jess smiled at the contagious laughter whilst Emilia was now more puzzled then ever. Kara’s face had turned white, now regretting that she had entered the Adult Zone.
All four viewed the scene in front of them to work out what was going on. In the middle of the stage, two girls were in the middle of the tickle fight. One in a set of red clothes appeared to be in their mid-20s whilst the other in green was in their early 40s Jess had guessed. The girl to the side had a screen above her head to provide more information. ‘Abby – Age 19. Loser of Round 1’. She was desperately pleading as two staff members tickled her entire body. Suddenly Jess’ eyes focused back on the two women as louder screams filled the air. The girl in red had managed to get the other women’s feet in an arm lock and was frantically scribbling her short nails all over the poor women’s soles. This continued for a minute or so before the women in green screamed out “GREEN! GREEN! GREEN!”. Suddenly, a staff member in yellow approached the centre of the stage and congratulated the girl in red.
“Congrats to Libby, lets give her a clap. Katherine, unfortunately for you, you have lost the second round to your daughter. Please follow my friend into the set of stocks next to your other daughter. Maybe you should have tag-teamed with Abby on Libby instead of the other way around.” Katherine, exhausted from the fight, hesitantly made her way to a set of stocks next to Abby and a screen lit up above it. ‘Katherine – Age 43. Loser of Round 2’. Like her younger daughter, her feet her locked in a set of stocks and toetied, her arms we cuffed above her head. Libby had returned from backstage in her normal clothing. The staff member spoke again as the two sets of stocks were wheeled off. “Well everyone that’s the end of our morning session of the Fight Contest over. Libby is the champion of both rounds over her younger sister and mum and those two are now being wheeled away to our Tent of Laughter to face their punishment. As I said at the start, the loser of Round 1 will receive a punishment of 2 hours of non-stop tickling, and Katherine, the loser of Round 2 will face 1 hour. I’m sure Libby will be more then thrilled to join in on dishing out the punishment and as mentioned, here is the £50 reward as winner. And now to you guys, thanks for watching and if you wish to join in and have a go making them suffer, I mean laugh oops, please head over to the tent and make a small donation with our staff. A reminder that 50% of donations go to a local charity and the rest to our running costs.”
‘Two hours! Silly girl’ Sarah thought to herself. Jess looked on as members of the crowd began to shuffle their way to the tent. She was ticklish and wouldn’t imagine herself being tickled in a set of stocks.
“Well should we go in and have a go at them ourselves” Jess said playfully.
“I think so, if you can’t handle a bit of tickling then you deserve it don’t you. Besides, my plan for the day has already taken a detour ”. Sarah agreed.
“No! Absolutely not, that poor girl and her mother will be hysterical now, it’s torture!” Kara abruptly stated. At that moment the laughter of two voice began to echo out of the tent before dissolving back into the chorus of laughter already in it.
“Exactly Kara, but we won’t be locked in those stocks so it’s nothing to worry about. And as you said, this fair is childish so it’s only a bit of childish fun, not torture. Emilia, don’t you agree with me and Sarah?” Jess playfully taunted Kara.
“Erm I don’t know” Emilia blushed now centre of attention. “I suppose I’d prefer to be the giver rather than the receiver”.
“There we are, majority vote, let’s go.” Sarah declared, once again in leader mode. She began to walk towards the tent when suddenly the staff member on stage began to speak again.
“Hi again everyone its Leah. So as its approaching 11:30, we’re almost ready for our next contest, the 4 Endurers Challenge.” The female staff behind her began to role 4 sets of identical stocks and secure them to the stage. “The only issue is that we need four volunteers from you guys in the crowd. You can be a family, a group of friends, or even strangers willing to see who has what it takes. A reminder that there will be one loser and the winners will all receive cash prizes. If you’re interested, come speak with us at the side of the stage.”
Sarah looked back at the girls behind her, now interested in the opportunity for a little fun. Jess gleefully continued to smile as she had all day, Emilia avoiding eye contact with anyone as ever and Kara looked like she had seen a ghost, already guessing what was on Sarah’s mind.
“Well girlies what do we think?”
“Absolutely Not! No! I agreed to come today to see you guys again and re-live our childhood, not to be tortured.” Kara shot back.
“We’re at the fair, we are reliving our childhood Kara,” said Sarah.
“No, you know what I mean, this whole area wasn’t here last time so lets just go play some hook-a-duck or something.” Kara argued.
“Oh stop being such a spoil…”
“NO!”
“Oh come on… We’re all in our thirties now when was the last time we ever did anything remotely like this. Surely 4 girls in their thirties can handle a little bit of tickling”. Sarah said, making chicken gestures towards Kara.
“I can’t remember the last time I was tickled, sure why not. At least three of us will get some money to spend for the rest of the day.” Jess pondered.
“And the loser?” Kara challenged.
“Well they end up in the Tent of Smiles or whatever it was” Sarah laughed.
“Tent of Laughter” Emilia corrected meekly. Always the quiet but brainy one of the group, even she had to admit that Kara’s situation was funny compared to the tough tomboy persona she usually had.
“And what about you Em, give us your thoughts”. Sarah questioned.
Em. Sarah only said their nicknames now when she wanted something. Em, K, Jessy. Emilia once again blushed. “I don’t know, I can’t remember the last time I was tickled either, but I was certainly ticklish when I was tickled. I’m not sure I could be in one of those chairs, I’d die”
“Oh you’ll be fine, surely that freak you used to date tickled you. Anyway, you’ll die of embarrassment in front of that crowd before you are tickled anyway. Tell you what I will tell you my worst spot and then if I lose, all of you know where to go for. It’s my feet.” Sarah responded, Jess was along with it and as much as she sometimes hated Em’s shyness, she could be swayed if all the group did something. Em nodded and then returned to staring at the sky.
“Em! Right, those girls were having their feet tickled, I hate that. Hate it”. Kara said in disbelief. ‘I knew we all have our own separate lives after university but my god what has got into these girls. It’s me v them. Well two of them anyway, Em won’t speak up now…’.
“Tell you what, the girl said that the three winners get a cash prize. Whatever it is if both me and you survive and Jess or Em lose, I’ll give you 10% of my prize as well Kara.”
“50%”
“25%, I’m ticklish myself you know I’m not just doing this for the fun”. Sarah compromised.
“Deal, but I swear to God if you lose, I will make sure you regret it”. Kara replied reluctantly.
Sarah led the group over the side of the stage where Leah was stood speaking with another member of staff. Leah smiled as she saw the group approach and spoke up.
“So you guys are here for the 4 Endurers Challenge then” Leah said in a cheerful, warming manner. “How about we go backstage, discuss the details and sign the contracts.”
“Contracts?” Emilia questioned, her clever-person head back on.
“All part of the process to protect both us and you, nothing to worry about. We write it as simply as possible, no jargon.”
The girls followed Leah backstage to a campervan where Leah handed them each a copy of the contract. She explained the rules to them that it would consist of two rounds. Round 1 would be two sets of the friends going against each other in an endurance challenge. All four girls were to be tied into a set of stocks they had seen on stage before and the tickling would begin at the same time. One of them would be going against another and the first one to say their safe word would lose out of that pair. The two winners would be released, and the two losers would receive a punishment before proceeding to Round 2. The girls all listened on with a mixture of thoughts and feelings.
Jess looked around the room, still wanting to have a go but each word making her think again. ‘Sarah looks up to it, of course she does it’s her idea. I would love to see her locked up and tortured, that would be a sight. Kara looks like she’s about to faint, well she made the deal hehe. Em, well its Em, I wouldn’t expect anything different from her but avoiding eye contact and staring stoically at the contact’.
“So this punishment for the two losers, how long is that?” Kara asked.
“Yeah, she’ll need to know so she can prepare herself” Sarah joked. Kara gave her daggers.
Leah smiled. “I can’t say, it’s an automatic forfeit of 10 minutes and then it’s the combined times of the two pairs. Out of the two losers whoever gives up first will have the combined time of the longest-lasting pair and vice versa.” The girls all seemed shocked. “But as it’s just the first round, we allow the two losers to choose a spot which is off-limits for the punishment”
‘Well, that’s a relief, I’d hate my sides to be tickled for over 10 minutes. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea’ Jess though. ‘This is a literal nightmare, and it hasn’t even started, I’m going to kill Sarah after this regardless of if I win’ Kara thought. Sarah looked around the room in a playful manner, yes, she was ticklish but even if she lost Round 1 she could survive 10 minutes and then beat Kara in Round 2.
“And Round 2?” Emilia mumbled. Leah looked over to her as she hadn’t heard.
“She asked about Round 2. Sorry about our boring friend, you can tell she is the sensible one of the groups. Did you know that she once read all of the T&C for Netflix once.” Jess said playfully to Leah’s amusement.
“So Round 2 yes, following the forfeit the two losers will then go against each other in a set of endurance challenges targeting certain parts of the body. They will get points for the number of minutes they survive without saying their safe word and the winner is release. The loser then receives the final punishment. And before you ask, I will warn you it is intense. As this is the main event, the loser will remain in the Hall of Laughter for the remainder of the day and will be tickled by our staff members and the three winners if you wish to. It’s almost midday so that will leave about 7 hours once we have finished the initial rounds. Oh, to ease any worries, it’s all female only” Leah said as if it was a routine speech.
The four girls looked around, all now contemplating. ‘Wow 7 hours, that’s intense even for me’ Sarah though. ‘7! 7! These smiley guys are loonies I cannot lose this, or my feet are done for’ Kara thought in horror. ‘Maybe I should have sided with Kara, even Sarah looks abit regretful now’ Jess contemplated. Emilia continued to stare at the contract thinking methodically ‘This is crazy. Kara’s definitely in Round 2 that’s without saying. Jess I’m not sure, she might find it fun. Sarah, I don’t think I’ve ever seen her get tickled, but she did say she was’.
“So girls, here’s a pen for each of you. Once you’ve signed, there is a colour-coded set of cloths for each of you to change into. The colour of the set will match your safe word throughout the contest. Then we’ll get started.” Sarah signed straight away, her initial regrets now replaced with her competitive spirit.
“Em, why are you reading through it, does she look like a criminal?” Sarah stated whilst Leah smiled. Blushing once again, Emilia signed the papers before she could talk herself out of it. It was more out of the peer-pressure of Sarah and Leah looking at her than her actually wanting the prize money, maybe she wasn’t that ticklish anymore she hoped. Jess looked around and once Emilia had signed, she took a deep breath and signed the contract. She was hoping that they would focus on anywhere but her sides, she might be able to outlive the others in that case. Kara continued to look horrified until Sarah waved her purse at her to remind her of their deal. Kara signed, already regretting her decision, but she needed the money however much it was, for the holiday she was saving up for her family. ‘Either that or I’ll need a holiday to recover from the punishment anyway if I lose…’
When they had all signed, Leah lead them to a changing room and a set of lockers for their personal stuff. She explained that the clothes were to expose as much of their skin as possible and make it fair on everyone. She handed each of the girls a matching set of a sports bra and shorts and told them that they can leave their shoes and socks on. Emilia’s was black, Jess’ green, Kara’s white and Sarah’s red. Jess gulped ‘Green. Is that a bad omen? Wasn’t one of the losers before in Green?’. All four girls returned in their outfits to the backstage area and were led out onto the stage by another member of the team.
Already on stage was Leah, standing in front of the 4 sets of stocks. She addressed the waiting crowd, all eager for the contest to start.
“Welcome back everyone, we have found our 4 Endurers ready to take on the challenge. Who will win and which unlucky soul will find themselves in the Tent of Laughter.” The crowd cheered in response to Leah as the girls arrived on stage. “So here we have Emilia, Kara, Sarah and Jess so please give them all a round of applause”. Leah went on to explain the rules of the first round to the crowd as she had to the girls backstage. Emilia’s face was bright red as she felt a million eyes all over her, Kara searching the crowd for who she would kill if they touched her feet, Jess as gleeful as ever. “Now we need to choose who will compete against who, and to make this fair I have put their names in a hat. Can we all welcome back Libby onto the stage everyone.” Libby returned onto the stage with a smile on her face.
“So Libby, how’s it going with mum and sis in the tent?”
“Amazing! Mum’s feet are currently being tortured by feathers, and my sister is going crazy”. Libby then went on to pick each girl’s name out of the hat. Kara v Jess and Emilia v Sarah. Both Sarah and Emilia sighed as they realised that they weren’t drawn against Kara. Jess on the other hand felt a bit of relief. Libby then gleefully skipped back to the Tent of Laughter to continue where she left off.
Each of the girls were directed to a set of stocks and sat down. Emilia next to Sarah, Kara next to Jess. The stocks around the feet we closed over them by a staff member, a belt was placed over their hips to reduce movement, and their arms were raised high above their heads, only allowing for a small amount of movement in their arms. ‘I need to get out! Why have I done this’ Kara panicked. Sarah sat confidently ready for the challenge, whilst Jess prayed to herself that she’d soon be out with a prize in hand. A staff member then sat at the base of each stock and introduced themselves to the girl sat in them. Natalie with Jess, Georgia with Emilia, Megan with Kara and then Leah went up to Sarah.
“I always love to pick the person I’m with in Round 1, we always have loads of fun”. Leah said with a mischievous grin. Sarah gulped realising that they would start with the feet. For the first time all day, Emilia saw Sarah’s face truly horrified. Each of the 4 staff members began to remove the girl’s footwear, Jess and Sarah’s sandals were easily removed much to their discomfort, the soles of their feet now facing the crowd. Emilia shivered as Georgia slowly untied her white sneakers and remove her white socks. Kara looked pleadingly at Megan as she teased Kara whilst removing her leather boots, her bare feet now exposed to the warm air. Each girl was more concerned as their toes were gently tied to the stocks, limiting any movement.
Another staff member went to the microphone and began to countdown with the crowd.
“Five.. Four… Three… Two.. One… Go!”
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This was my first go at a story and was a bit longer than I thought so I think there will be a few parts all around 3 main ‘chapters’. Once again, any feedback is very welcome.
So who do we think is going into Round 2?
