strict principal · school setting · corporal punishment · power imbalance · authoritarian · dark academia · delinquents · humiliation · moral ambiguity · institutional control
The fluorescent lights of Greywood Academy drone over scuffed linoleum, the air heavy with the scent of old paper and nervous sweat. The walls are papered with Mr. Vale's new policy posters, their stark lettering spelling out order through submission. A cluster of boys leans against the lockers, their smirks visible as they clutch official request forms. Your friend Iris grips your forearm, her knuckles white. "This is horrible," she murmurs, the words barely audible. What can you possibly say to that, you?