This is the middle of "birthday season" for my family -- eight close relatives were born in May or June -- so I've been thinking about that time-honored tradition, the birthday spanking. That's planted seeds for a few stories, the first of which appears below.

What follows is a work of fantasy intended for an adult audience that enjoys stories about spanking. If you don't meet all these categories, please find another newsgroup.

Steve paced the floor, eagerly awaiting Annalisa's arrival. He usually enjoyed his work as a tutor for his university's American Language Academy program, but sometimes (now, for instance), the job brought some unexpected perks.

Steve had tutored for the Academy as long as he'd been at the university. Students from foreign countries would enter the Academy with only a rudimentary knowledge of English; after an intensive study course, they'd leave able to either enter the regular university program or transfer to another institution. Steve greatly enjoyed meeting students from a variety of countries and cultures; his next appointment, though, was his particular favorite.

Not because Annalisa was such a wonderful student; far from it, in fact. Quite simply, she was one of the most attractive women he'd ever met. A native of Paraguay, she had the raven hair, dark complexion, brown eyes, and high cheekbones common to her people. Moreover, she also had the usual Latin temperament, which she didn't hesitate to display when frustrated by one of her lessons.

To Steve, though, all these paled in comparison to her most attractive feature: her bottom. Annalisa had two very round, firm, full cheeks. Shaped wonderfully by the tight jeans or slacks she usually wore, Annalisa's rump quickly became the starring attraction in many of Steve's fantasies. He still recalled the time when, while wearing a pair of white linen slacks, she'd dropped a book and bent over to pick it up, presenting him with a view of the most exquisite set of VPL's he'd ever seen. It took all Steve's willpower to avoid giving her a hearty swat right then and there!

A soft knock sounded on the conference room door. He opened it; there she stood, dressed not in her usual sweatshirt-and-jeans combo, but in a purple, long-sleeved, knee-length dress which accentuated her trim figure. "You're really dressed up! What's the occasion?" Steve inquired as she strode into the room.

"It's my birthday. My roommates are giving me a party tonight," Annalisa replied.

"Your birthday? Congratulations! How old are you?"

"Twenty-three."

The words slipped out before he could stop them. "Well, I'll have to give you your birthday spanking before you leave."

"Birthday spanking?" She looked confused. "What is that? I never heard of such a thing!"

He'd broached the subject; no going back now. "It's a big tradition in my country. On your birthday, everybody gets to give you one spank for each year of your age, and one to grow on."

Annalisa shook her head. "Everyone? Doesn't that hurt?"

"Oh, the spanks aren't very hard." He pressed his luck. "Here, I'll show you." Steve pulled a desk chair into the middle of the room, sat down, and extended his hand to her. "Come over here."

She hung back, unsure. "Annalisa, this is an important American tradition. Part of learning our language involves learning our culture, as well. You do want to learn, don't you?"

Slowly, reluctantly, Annalisa nodded, then approached his right side. He eased her into position over his lap, then slowly drew her dress up over her hips, revealing the object of his dreams, now encased only in light blue nylon panties. Knowing he'd already gone too far, he slipped both thumbs under the waistband of her panties and started drawing them downward.

Annalisa squirmed under his touch. "Do you have to do that?" she asked.

"Oh, yes," Steve lied easily, "birthday spankings are always given on the bare bottom." He lowered her panties to mid-thigh, then sat quietly for a moment, drinking in the sight. Annalisa started to wriggle again, obviously uncomfortable in this position. Steve knew he couldn't prolong his pleasure much longer, so he raised his right hand and got busy.

"One!" he said sharply, delivering a good swat (not hard, but definitely not soft, either) to her left cheek. She grunted softly from the impact. Not pausing, he counted "Two!" and swatted her right cheek. Another low grunt and a bit of squirming resulted. He continued counting, alternating between cheeks, keeping the spanks only medium hard.

All too soon, Steve reached the twenty-third spank. He couldn't resist making the "one to grow on" a real stinger. Annalisa yelped loudly as the blow landed, then started pushing herself to her feet.

Inspiration struck. "Not so fast!" Steve commanded, gripping her firmly around the waist. "This is your twenty-third birthday, and I've only given you one birthday spanking. Therefore, I owe you spankings for your first through twenty-second birthdays, and there's no better time to give them to you than right now!"

He started in quickly, to cut off her protests. SMACK! "One! And" SMACK! "one to grow on."

SMACK! "One!" SMACK! "Two! And" SMACK! "one to grow on."

SMACK! "One!" SMACK! "Two!" SMACK! "Three! And" SMACK! "one to grow on."

And so it went, until finally SMACK! "Twenty-two! And" SMACK! "one to grow on" sounded. By then, Annalisa's bottom was a uniform rosy pink, and her struggles had subsided. She laid still over Steve's lap, sniffling softly. Steve, physically and mentally exhausted himself, sat quietly for a few minutes, letting her recover, then helped her to her feet. He wasn't capable of standing himself just yet, so he addressed her as she stood over him, eyes glistening, rubbing her bottom with both hands.

"Ah, I think we could both use a break. Why don't we skip the rest of today's lesson?"

She nodded, and, without a word, pulled up her panties and headed for the door. "See you Wednesday?" he called after her; no response. Steve slumped in his chair after she'd gone, very glad he had no more appointments that day. He was in no condition to think about the English language, or much of anything else.

Time dragged slowly by. Steve's days were filled with thoughts of his next meeting with Annalisa, his nights with images of her bare behind bouncing under his hand. Wednesday, and the time for their regular session, finally arrived. He opened the door to her knock, noting with some surprise that she wore the same dress as at their previous meeting. Deciding on a low-key approach, he said simply, "Good afternoon, Annalisa. Ready to hit the books?"

She shook her head thoughtfully. "Can we talk for a while first?"

"Sure," he said, feeling vaguely uneasy at her calm manner. They sat down, facing each other, a few feet apart. Annalisa stared at her hands for a few moments, Steve's sense of unease growing, before she spoke.

"After I left here the other day, I went to the party my roommates gave me. During the party, they said they had to give me a birthday spanking, too."

"And?" Steve wasn't really sure he wanted to hear any more.

"They made me bend over the couch, and everyone gave me two or three light slaps over my dress."

Steve sat impassively as his insides slowly turned to mush. His little gambit had backfired! She'd probably already been to the Dean. He'd get fired from his tutoring job and most likely be expelled, if he wasn't prosecuted for assault.

Annalisa was talking again. "In my country, naughty girls are spanked as punishment. Is this not true in your country?"

He nodded, not sure where she was heading.

"However, it is not unheard of for a grown woman to get spanked as well, if she's been naughty. Does this happen in your country too?"

"Yes ... yes, it does," he replied eagerly, seeing a faint glimmering of hope.

"I did not study my English lessons this week. That was very naughty of me. I need to be punished." Before he could say a word, she stood up, walked to his side, and bent herself across his knees.

Offering a brief prayer of thanksgiving for his good fortune, Steve wasted no time in raising her skirt and baring her bottom. This spanking was much harder, much longer, and much, much better than its predecessor -- better because Steve knew it was what they both wanted. This time, he was fulfilling her needs as well as his own.

The spanking over, Annalisa insisted on continuing the lesson. Her stinging rump must have helped her concentration, because the session went smoothly. On her way out the door, she turned back and offered one parting shot, her eyes flashing with the Latin temper she'd displayed so often before:

"In my country, it is not only naughty girls who get spanked. Naughty boys get spanked too -- especially boys who play tricks on innocent young girls." She paused, then narrowed her eyes and smiled. "The registrar informs me your birthday is next week. I trust you will be prepared."