A blood-red paw

@Kove

Three wolves were in her Dark Brotherhood, but she saw potential for a third. He had joined the meetings, intrigued by the goddess, but the interruption of Raissa had disrupted her. Now she saw it fit to mark and initiate Kove, a fourth member.

She was loath to leave her pups again, especially so young. She fed them and slept with them at night, but she felt that she was neglecting the little things. She promised, that this week, she would spend more time with them, especially now that their eyes were opening, and soon their ears, and the growth of milk teeth for eating.

But, here she was, on the outskirts of the swamp, where she initiated Bane and Slade. The priestess tipped her head back and howled for the other white male, curling herself and shivering slightly as a chill went through her bones. How she would love to be back in her den with her babies now, instead of doing this, but she needed to.

The chill of the Winter air passed by the pale, moving form, ruffling his thick fur a bit. He had been coming back from another loop around one of the border's edges, tiredness seeming to evade him. In his mind, he knew he should rest a bit, but his body ignored the suggestion and moved him forward more. Trudging through the forest, he stopped when he heard a howl, the song dancing in the wind. It was clear the voice belonged to the priestess—Meldresi—and was a call to him. Without another moment of hesitation, his paws stepped over the others to turn himself about, his path redirected towards the swamps.

Kove though it strange for the woman to be away from her young so soon, but then again, what did he know? He'd never really been around newborns before, nor did he know exactly what they needed and how much of it they needed to survive. Perhaps it wasn't so strange for her to be away from them after all? Hell, he'd probably never know. When the brute did know, however, was that the swamps were approaching quickly, and the dark Queen's form had entered his line of sight. Slowing down to a trot as he drew closer, a part of him was somewhat glad that he hadn't had to go directly into the swamps. That area was still pretty foreign to him, having not yet felt the desire to explore it and scout out areas that might be firmer than others.

Giving a bow of his head as he approached her, Kove's footfalls fell silent as his legs moved him no longer. "Good evening, Meldresi," he greeted.

The priestess did not have to wait long for Kove, to her relief. The male responded promptly, trotting towards her and stopping in front of the rock on which the new mother perched. He bowed his head and greeted her, and Meldresi merely responded with a "Good evening, Kove."

She again made the dye, the blood red and bright mixture that was used to mark Slade and Bane but it was smaller than the batch from before, since she had only one man to mark. She kept swirling it, both absentmindedly and in an attempt to keep it from freezing.

"You came to the meeting when I discussed joining my religion, but I was distracted by Raissa, and I never continued asking you," she said in a way of apology. "But tonight, I will formally ask you if you wish to join the Dark Brotherhood."

When his greeting was returned and the dark woman went to work mixing the bright crimson concoction, his light copper orbs watched. Marking one's coat or body with dyes of any sort seemed odd to him, but he said nothing. It would be a great honor to join the Brotherhood, that much he was sure of, so a new substance on his pale fur would become of little concern. It would be something to get use to, as many other things were. Kove's ears perked slightly at the mention of the meeting, then moved back slightly. In situations like this, his curiosity often got the better of him, but he had plans to hold it back. For now, at least.

"I would want nothing more than to be apart of the Brotherhood," the man responded, his old way of acting surfacing a bit. A sort of eagerness mixed itself with his words, even though he knew it was not a matter to be rushed.

She was pleased by the genuine eagerness in his tone. What his reasoning for joining the Dark Brotherhood was, she had no idea. But, it was his earnestness that mattered to her, the fact that he wanted to join of his own free will. "I have already told you of Mephala, the main goddess of the Dark Brotherhood. But, there is another god you should know of: Sithis. Mephala's consort." she curled her tail tight around her paws as she spoke, keeping her gaze trained on Kove the whole time.

"He is the god of death, the keeper of the Void, which we believe that the souls of the dead go. Whether you wish to believe in those two is your own wish, but know that they play very important roles in how we govern things." Bane and Slade took very quickly to the gods, and believed in them fiercely. Bane she knew already feared and respected the power of Mephala, but Slade had simply caught onto the religion.

Rolling over her words, he thought of the idea of the God known as 'Sithis', as well as the 'Void'. Believing in them was nowhere close to seeming far fetched, but Kove had also grown being taught to believe in several things his family saw as Deities. He'd later learned that two of said deities that allegedly watched over each of them where, in fact, simply constellations, and the other was a mythical nymph. Still, he wanted to believe that such beings, those above themselves, existed somewhere out there. It would take time for him to become familiar with the priestess' Goddess and God, and feel comfortable serving them as their own beings, but it was something he felt he should do. Leave Astraea and Khione behind him and in the past, so he could look ahead to the future with Mephala and Sithis.

Well, he would try to leave them in the past, anyways. The ghost of a wolf couldn't guarantee that to even himself, so he said nothing of it to the Alphess. "I will be sure to keep that in mind," Kove responded.

She wondered if Kove would convert as well as joining the Dark Brotherhood. It did not really matter to her, though she appreciated the fact that her Dark Brothers were loyal to her and her gods. The priestess continued onto her next point, which she thought was more important.

"Most important to the Dark Brotherhood is the tenets, the only true rules we have. 1. Never dishonor the Night Mother, Mephala. 2. Never betray the Dark Brotherhood or its secrets. 3. Never disobey or refuse to carry out an order from a Dark Brotherhood superior. 4. Never steal the possessions of a Dark Brother or Dark Sister. 5. Never kill a Dark Brother or Dark Sister. To do any of these is to invoke the Wrath of Sithis."

Rules, he knew, where apart of any civilization, of any order. There were few to the Brotherhood, but those few were right to the point. They didn't dance around little topics as some did, but were instead right up front to bask in the glow of the light. Kove liked that. It gave him no reason to misinterpret the priestess' words, nor could he see a reason anyone else would. The punishment for breaking said rules was, to him, justifiable. The ghost had no reason to object to them, and so, he didn't.

"I will follow these rules," he told her. "But out of loyalty to the Brotherhood, rather than out of fear of death." Fear of death. He could have used a better string of words, and yet, he hadn't.

Like the others, Kove had accepted the tenets quickly. She wasn't surprised by that, they were direct to the point, easy to remember and easy to follow. It was one of the rallying points of the Dark Brotherhood, something that even the atheists and those who refused to leave their own religion could agree with.

His final statement she was pleased with. He was loyal, to her and the Dark Brotherhood, and would fight to the death to defend his new Family. She smiled briefly before speaking again. "Normally, the initiation includes killing another wolf, but as of yet, I have bypassed it. I am certain that you would pass that test with flying colors, Kove." For once, this kind of statement was not spoken with the pretence of manipulating another. She was genuinely sure the second white ghost would follow that order, like she was sure with Slade and Keith. "Come forward, Kove, and I shall bestow this mark upon you. Then you shall be a true member of the Dark Brotherhood"

Until it had been brought up, Kove had all but forgotten about the killing part. It was a task he was sure he'd be able to carry out if told to do so, but who they would have him murder in the future, he wondered about. Who wouldn't think of such things, though? Well, he knew of one who he believed would never even consider stealing the life of another, but none in his family who still lived would think twice before killing if the need arose. They were aggressive wolves, but somehow that gene had become recessive when passed onto the ghost. It only showed when needed, but could be brought forth quickly. A good attribute, in his eyes, and one he believed could be seen as useful to the Brotherhood.

Stepping closer to Meldresi, the pale man lowered his skull to bow slightly. Saying nothing more, not wanting to delay the action, he awaited the marking.

The ghost bent his head down after approaching, allowing her free reign to mark him. She dipped her paw in the red dye, then pressed it firmly onto his left shoulder, digging her claws in slightly so that the clawmarks showed on his fur as well. With the mark finished, Meldresi pulled back and admired her handiwork. A fourth member in her Brotherhood. "So begins a contract bound in blood...Welcome to the Dark Brotherhood, Kove." She purred softly.

Once the ebony woman had pulled away from him, Kove moved his head in order to see the new mark on his shoulder. It stood out, as he'd suspected it would, but didn't mind. Already, he'd planned to take pride in the mark, and honor it as well. Turning his head back around, he brought his copper orbs to the priestess and, once again, gave a bow of his head. "Thank you," he voiced. "For allowing me to join." If he'd been approached just months prior, the ghost would have said he'd never join a pack. He would have gone on and on about how he didn't want to be tied down to a certain piece of land. Now, however, he was not only apart of a pack, but had also given his loyalty to an Order, to a Brotherhood. Despite what his past self might have thought, Kove could no longer see himself as just another lone wolf out there in the world. He enjoyed being apart of something, of being loyal to something and someone, other than himself.

She nodded to Kove's grateful response, then stepped closer and licked Kove's forehead in a semi-friendly, semi-familial way. They were unofficially brethren now. Their mother was Mephala, the Night Mother, and their father was Sithis, the Dread Father. Now she had another Dark Brother in her Dark Family, and their numbers were growing. "You're welcome, Kove."

With that, Meldresi pulled away and let out a short howl, alerting the other Dark Brotherhood members that they had a new Brother in their ranks. After flashing Kove one more smile, she melted back into the dark, and returned to her pups.

Final post from me, then. c:

After welcoming the lick to his forehead, he listened to the howl she then released. He would serve the family to the best of his abilities, as had already been decided by his inner thoughts. Once the priestess returned to the shadows, heading back to where he assumed her young to be located, he stood in his place for a bit longer. Kove's mind wandered from one thought to the next, going over what had happened several times. It was a memorable event to him, and one he was sure to never forget. With one last glance in the dark woman's direction, he turned himself and trotted off through the forest.