The Art Of Bratting

If you have ever been to a spanking party, you will notice some bratting going on. I have been called a brat (and a good one!) many times but I have never really put my thinking cap on and thought about what the term "brat" meant to me. When I was ten, if you had called me a brat I would have denied it even though the term definitely fit me then. Notice I didn't say I was a spoiled brat, just a brat.
The bratting that goes on at parties can take several shapes. It can be very subtle or downright obvious. It can be (and often is) quite charming. But it can also be irritating, not just to the person on the receiving end of the brat's attention but to everyone around them. Bratting can be verbal (as in simple smart alecky remarks) or physical (such as tying a Top's shoelaces together or hitting him with a rubber band or putting ice down his back...my favorite!) Every bottom and Top has to decide for themselves what constitutes bratting. If you want to take this route to a spanking, you have to decide what kind of brat you are. I am not at all subtle, but my bratting is usually the non-threatening variety. I would never do anything that might result in injury for the Top. And I certainly would be horrified if I were ever taken aside and told to tone my bratting down, which I have heard has happened to others.
There are Tops who don't like bratting. When I come across this type of Top, I respect their wishes as I would expect them to respect mine.
I liken this behavior to a dance between bottom and Top. If I've done my job right, I will end up over the knee of the Top. Because I brat mostly in public, the spankings I get for it tend to be public. Other brats and Tops who witness the spanking usually offer "encouragement".
At one party, I was getting a spanking from a certain Top. Both participants were having a good time. But another brat who witnessed this, got a twinkle in her eyes and said "Cigi, will you please stop yawning?"
The Top asked her, "Has she been yawning?"
She replied, "Yeah, she's yawned about five times since you started spanking her."
Of course, what I got was a little harder spanking and the addition of toys. I adored the brat but I spent the rest of the party trying to find a way to get her back. I did, too. While I would never rat out another brat or blame another brat for something I did, I have no problem "helping" another brat get a spanking. Isn't that what friends are for?
Sometimes you have to avoid what I call the "wet blankets" who sometimes attend parties, the ones who detest bratting and think all forms of bratting should be banned from spanking parties. These are the Tops (well, mostly Doms) who think we should all act like we are at High Tea or something. Out of respect, I don't brat these gentlemen in fact, I try to completely avoid them. To them, I am just wrong and so is my behavior.
I once had a particularly Domly Dom tell me, "I can't understand why someone doesn't take you brats in hand. If I had my way you would all be sitting quietly with your hands folded in your laps waiting for one of us to summon you." Ummmm, pardon me but....YAWWWWWNNNNNN! Can you think of anything so boring? What the guy was trying to say, of course, is that he considered us all to be submissive and he didn't appreciate our behavior.
"I leave these parties every time with a pounding headache", he complained.
"Well, then why do you come to these parties?" I asked. I thought it was a reasonable question. He didn't give me an answer. Spanking parties are loud, boisterous and fun events. What was this party pooper doing there anyway?
I'm not saying if you don't like bratting you shouldn't come to parties, but I will say if you expect all the ladies to behave the same you will be disappointed. You will likely see all types of behavior, and yes, some of it bratty. If you see me at a party, it will definitely be bratty. :-)
Bratting is an art, like anything else. It takes practice and you have to have someone around willing to let you practice on them. Luckily, I have a lot of Tops around who don't mind my bratting. And, yes, I've gone too far and I've learned things the hard way. But I've found out that I love the atmosphere of spanking parties and bratting is not the only thing going on. A lot of the behavior is flirty and fun, not what I would call bratting at all.
If you find you don't fit the brat mold, that's ok. You will still have a good time at parties. Brats aren't the only ones who get themselves spanked. Ladies who don't want to brat can simply ask for a spanking. To me, that's not as much fun but to each their own.
There is a party coming up in Chicago at the end of the month and, having realized that at the last few parties I haven't bratted as much as usual, I plan to do some catching up. I even bet there are a few other brats and Tops who are willing to help me out. :-)
Have a fun evening!