She stood before him with a nervous smile. She was in her mid-twenties but felt as hesitant as she had when attending her first tutorial.
"Are you ready?" He asked, the tone of his voice measured and calm.
"Yes, sir." she replied, her words spoken with care.
The room was warm with two large armchairs at one end and a desk at the other. There was a large, leather chair behind the desk and two smaller ones in front. The wall behind the desk was lined with books; not the well ordered, leather bound volumes that can be found in the libraries of stately homes, but the practical reference books of a working writer or teacher.
He gestured towards the desk, which was empty apart from a computer screen angled towards the big chair but pushed towards one end of the desk top. She walked towards the other end and stood looking down, awaiting his next instruction.
"I have marked the special assignment that I set for you and I'm sure you remember the arrangement that we made. Do you still want to know the results, young lady?"
"Yes, sir." Once again she said nothing more than was necessary. He had taught her to be concise in these circumstances unless he encouraged her to say more.
"Tell me then, exactly what you recall of my terms."
"You agreed to set a special assignment for me that you would mark carefully but you said that the benefit of the assignment was in my completing it. I will only be told the results if I feel that I need to be told. If I do I will offer you my naked bottom to be spanked however you choose."
"Correct, continue."
"Because you assured me that I should not doubt my ability, you will punish me more severely if the work is outstanding than if it is merely adequate. If it is poor you will instead give me an additional tutorial to improve my chances of achieving high marks next time."
"Good, that was an exact summary, well remembered. I'm sure that you didn't expect to be given the tutorial and I'm pleased to say that it won't be necessary."