The Pledge Mistress
Copyright 2006 by EC
EC's Erotic Art & Fiction - http://www.ecgraphicarts.com/

(warnings: erotic discipline, sex between adults, medical fetish, public nudity, 
sexual hazing)

Chapter 38 – The Four-Beta oath

Lisa celebrated the first day of August by taking off the splint protecting her 
injured finger.  The university intern advised her to "go easy" on her hand for a 
few more days, but added that she could resume most physical activity right 
away.  Tracy advised Lisa that she expected her to go back to doing normal sit-
ups and push-ups.  Lisa's volleyball training now could include practicing 
serving, but returning to spiking the ball and conducting saves still was several 
days away because Lisa's hand still needed some more time to completely heal.

During the final push to learn the Four-Beta rules and history, it was Kathleen 
who took the lead among the pledges.  She drilled the others to make sure there 
would be no problems during the final panel interview, impressing Lisa with her 
performance.  Kathleen, who always had quietly stood in the background of the 
pledge group, finally had the chance to excel and gain the respect of Bernadette 
and Cherine.  During the final days of pledging, the three freshmen truly were 
working together as a team, each member of the group bringing her own strengths 
to the group.

When finals week arrived, Lisa realized how many lives had depended on her 
over the past month.  The other members of her pledge group had excelled in their 
training duties, largely because she had been there to motivate them throughout 
the most difficult periods of the summer semester.  All three of her pledging 
companions had difficult personalities and totally different life experiences upon 
entering the sorority, but after three months of intense pressure and shared 
hardship they had become close friends.  Yes, even Bernadette and Kathleen were 
getting along, and who would have thought that would have happened at the 
beginning of the summer?  Now, under the leadership of Bernadette, the core 
members of the freshman class soon would take their proper place in the Four-
Beta house.

As Bernadette took charge of the pledge group and replaced Lisa as their de facto 
leader, Lisa reflected that already she was beginning to become somewhat 
separated from the others.  She was not a freshman, thus she would not be part of 
the freshman class.  Once she became a member of the sorority, she would 
become one of the sophomores and hang out more with them than with the 
freshmen.  Of course, the one exception would be Kathleen.  Although Lisa would 
not be hanging out with the other freshmen very much, she would spend as much 
time as possible with her lover, training her and comforting her.

----------

Lisa became an invaluable asset to Ruth Burnside as papers and tests flooded into 
the office to be corrected and graded.  She could tell that Burnside was satisfied 
with having chosen her as her student aide and looked forward to continuing 
working with her in the fall.  The professor dropped hints that soon Lisa would be 
assisting her with research.  Assuming she performed well with the research, 
eventually Lisa would take Mark's place as her primary teaching assistant, once 
he graduated with his Ph.D.  Lisa realized that, at age 19, she already had her 
place within the Economics Department.

As the semester drew to a close, Lisa continued working naked in Burnside's 
office and thoroughly enjoyed doing so.  She did not much care for standing at 
attention in Burnside's "position of submission and respect" and was looking 
forward to ending particular detail once she swore in.  However, she knew that 
she would really miss the comfort of not wearing any clothing while working at 
her desk.

A strange thought crossed Lisa's mind.  Perhaps, during the fall semester, it 
would be possible for her to continue working at her desk in the nude.  What she 
wanted was not to be required to strip, but instead to persuade Burnside to make 
her job clothing optional.  She would slip on a dress if there were any visitors in 
the office, but have it off whenever alone or just with the professor.  If she could 
be naked or dressed as she pleased, casually treating her clothing in the same way 
she would treat a sweater or jacket, that would be ideal.  Knowing how much the 
professor enjoyed looking at her body and her over-all tolerance of personality 
quirks, she suspected that Burnside would go along with her request if approached 
in the right way and at the right moment.

Lisa decided to address the issue of her attire the day the professor gave the last of 
her finals.  Both women had spent their day hard at work with grading, but finally 
Burnside decided to take a break and invited her student to lunch in the fancy 
restaurant on the top floor of the Student Center.  Burnside was in particular good 
humor as the two women chatted about the upcoming fall semester.  When the 
topic of conversation moved towards Lisa's swearing in and the end of her status 
as a pledge, the professor commented:

"You know, one thing I'll miss is your pledge uniform.  Definitely that added a bit 
of fun to the office over the summer."

"Dr. Burnside, about that...I was kinda wondering..."

"Wondering what?"

"Well, you know that I'm sort of a nudist, and I don't like wearing clothes...I 
mean...I wear clothes on campus because I have to...but I really prefer having my 
clothes off whenever I can."

"OK, so what are you getting at?"

"I'd really appreciate it if you'd let me...you know...continue working like I was 
over the summer...I mean like...when no one else is in the office..."

"In other words, you want to continue working in the nude?"

"Yes...I mean like...when no one else is around...I mean...I'd keep a dress hanging 
next to my desk and put it on whenever anyone comes in..."

The professor thought for a moment.

"It'd have to be a dress you can slip over your head, something you could put on 
in just a couple of seconds, no zippers or buttons."

"Like the dress I wore at the beginning of the summer?"

"That'd work."

"So, you're OK with it?"

"Lisa, just so there's no misunderstanding, I want you to tell me, in your own 
words, exactly what you want."

The student took a deep breath.

"Dr. Burnside, I'd appreciate it if you'd allow me to not wear my clothes when I'm 
in your office.  I'd like to work naked, like I did over the summer."

"Alright, you have my permission."

Then the professor gave Lisa a mischievous smile:

"Actually it'll make things more convenient for me.  Whenever you screw up and 
I have to put you over my lap, I won't have to wait for you to get undressed."

Lisa's heart skipped a beat, as she wondered how serious Burnside's last 
comment was.  Anyhow, it was done.  She had her boss's permission to continue 
working in the nude.

----------

Finals week brought very good news to the Four-Beta house and to Lisa in 
particular.  The two failing juniors did amazingly well on their economics finals, 
just good enough to salvage their class grades and get a "C-" from Burnside for 
the semester.  They made it, just barely, and in doing so saved themselves from 
academic probation and Shannon from a huge embarrassment.  The other 
members of Lisa's study group also did quite well on their finals and credited 
their group leader with helping keep their grade-point averages from falling.

Even more important to Lisa and Tracy was the fate of the two pledge prospects, 
which entirely depended on whether or not they could pass their freshman classes.  
On Thursday afternoon Tracy, the three freshmen pledges, and the two guests 
returned to the sorority house in very high spirits, cheering and waving test 
papers.  Brittany and Erin had passed all of their summer classes with low "C's".  
Obviously "C's" were not grades normally acceptable to the Four-Beta sorority, 
but considering how badly the two guests had been doing in class just three weeks 
before, merely passing was a huge accomplishment.  Both girls got on the phone 
and excitedly called their parents with the good news.  Parents usually are not 
thrilled to find out their daughters got "C's" in all their classes, but in the case of 
Brittany and Erin, what they had just achieved was a big accomplishment.  In just 
three weeks they had salvaged their semester and narrowly missed flunking out of 
the university.

----------

On Friday, August 12, the final day of the semester, Tracy and the pledges 
returned to the sorority house with their complete grades.  The entire group, even 
Lisa with her more difficult classes from Burnside, had straight "A's".  Tracy 
called Alexandra and asked her to "get the room set up".

Upon returning to the house, Tracy and her group stripped for the last time as 
pledges returning from class.  Tracy then led her group into the sitting room, 
where Alexandra, the other three remaining officers were sitting at a large table, 
and the seniors were standing in formal gowns.  Also present were the two pledge 
prospects, who had been invited to watch so they could learn more about what 
would be expected from them as pledges.

The Pledge Mistress motioned with a slight gesture of her hand that her pledges 
were to kneel.  Once they were kneeling, she stepped in front of her group and 
stood at attention.

"President Alexandra!"

"Yes, Pledge Mistress Tracy!"

"I request permission to submit my pledge group's academic performance to the 
officers of the Four-Beta Sorority, as verification they have proven themselves as 
scholars!"

"Permission granted, Pledge Mistress!  Please step forward!"

Tracy presented the grades to her fellow officers.  Alexandra examined each 
grade sheet and passed it to the other three women sitting at the table.  Then she 
took four certificates out of an envelope and uncapped a stamp.  Lisa realized the 
documents were official Four-Beta membership certificates.  To be a valid proof 
of sorority membership, the papers had to have three stamps placed on the 
bottom: academic performance, physical fitness, and knowledge of the history and 
protocol of the Four-Beta Sorority.

The president called each pledge to the table to verify that her grade sheet 
accurately reflected her academic performance for the semester.  Upon hearing 
"yes, President Alexandra" the sorority leader stamped her certificate as 
verification she had "proven herself as a scholar".

Alexandra decided to take care of the panel interview next, but would leaving the 
PT test for the following morning.  The formal vote of admittance would have to 
be delayed until Saturday evening, but that hardly mattered because it was a 
formality.  Alexandra decided to hold the formal vote at 9:00, just before the 
swearing in ceremony at midnight.

"Pledge Mistress Tracy!"

"Yes, President Alexandra!"

"Have your pledges properly learned the rules, protocol, and history of the Four-
Beta Sorority?"

"Yes, President Alexandra!"

"Very well.  You will choose one member of your group to converse with us.  
Tell the others to wait in the pool area until called."

"Yes, President Alexandra!  Pledge Kathleen!"

"Yes, Pledge Mistress Tracy!"

"You will demonstrate your knowledge of the rules, protocol, and history of the 
Four-Beta Sorority to the officers and seniors!  Pledge Lisa, Pledge Bernadette, 
and Pledge Cherine, please exit to the pool and wait until you are summoned!"

Tracy had chosen Kathleen to go first, partly because she knew the material better 
than her fellow pledges, and partly so she wouldn't have a chance to get nervous 
while waiting to face the panel.

The shyest member of the pledge group trembled as she stood before the officers, 
but her performance was flawless.  The Social Director, curious to see how much 
the pledge really did know, asked some rather obscure questions, but always got 
correct answers.  After 30 minutes, Alexandra stood up and congratulated 
Kathleen.

"You can be proud of yourself.  You got a perfect score.  You're the first pledge 
I've ever seen who's made it through the panel interview with no mistakes."

Kathleen forced a smile, but Tracy could tell that she was becoming more and 
more nervous.  She was very relieved when the pledge left the room and would 
have a chance to calm down.  Anyhow, Pledge Kathleen now had the second of 
the three required stamps on her certificate.

The other three pledges took advantage of the delay to drill each other on the 
Four-Beta material.  Kathleen exited the house so nervous that she still was 
shaking, but it was obvious she had passed.  Lisa hugged her as Bernadette left to 
face the panel.

That night, the summer group slept on their cots as pledges for the very last time.  
Tracy, determined to keep her promise to the very end, slept with them.

----------

The PT test was the final task that needed to be completed by the pledges, but it 
also turned out to be the easiest.  The Four-Beta officers, the four pledges, and the 
two pledge prospects walked to the university stadium for the test.  Polk was there 
to let them in, obviously hoping to see one or more of the Four-Betas out of 
uniform.  Unfortunately for him, for once there was nothing out of the ordinary, 
just four young women in shorts running around the track for 30 minutes and 
doing push-ups and sit-ups.  The pledges tested and received their final PT scores.  
The group left the stadium after about an hour to cross campus and return the 
Four-Beta house.

And, that was it.  Lisa, Bernadette, Cherine, and Kathleen had passed the final 
task that stood between them and full-membership in the Four-Beta Sorority.  The 
group returned to the sitting room and Alexandra put the third and final stamp on 
each membership certificate.  With that the pledges were released for the 
afternoon.  They would not be allowed to get dressed or leave the sorority house 
until the swearing-in ceremony, but were free to relax in the back yard, sleep in 
the guestroom, make phone calls, or use the Internet.  The freshmen immediately 
headed for the swimming pool, but Tracy pulled Lisa aside to go to the sorority 
office and look over the training record of Brittany and Erin.  

Now that the pledge challenges were completed, both Tracy and Lisa were in 
reflective moods.  Before dealing with the pledge prospects, Lisa needed to talk 
about her own feelings, about her pending transition from pledge to full member.  

It was strange to think, that after nearly three months, Lisa and her companions 
would finally be allowed to come and go as they pleased, wear clothing in the 
sorority house, and above all, sleep in normal beds with sheets and covers.  No 
longer would they have to address everyone as "ma'am", nor kneel in front of 
anyone.  It was a very weird feeling, to still be in the Four-Beta House but 
suddenly be treated as an equal and have all that freedom.  How best to use that 
new freedom and enjoy her time in a productive way weighed heavily on Lisa's 
mind:

Tracy responded:

"You've just grasped the most important thing I wanted to teach you this summer.  
I want you to enjoy all the small good things in your life and appreciate what's 
been given to you.  A person doesn't normally appreciate having choices and 
freedom until they're taken away.  That's one of the points we're trying to make 
with the Four-Beta pledge program.  Make you appreciate all of the details in 
your life, all of the trivial liberties you normally take for granted.  I've got an 
example of what I'm talking about, from my own past.  A couple of years ago, I 
spent 11 weeks in Basic Training for the Army.  That was 11 weeks that I never 
had a chance to be alone, never had a chance to so much as have a cup of coffee 
or even take a piss without some drill sergeant yelling at me to 'hurry up'.  I never 
got a chance to read a book, or watch the news, or sleep without getting woken 
up, or just go for a walk by myself.  I never thought about any of those things 
before Basic.  After those 11 weeks I appreciated a lot more in my life.  To this 
day I still appreciate all the stuff I missed in Basic Training.  And that's the lesson 
I wanted to pass along to you."

"…and the lesson we'll be passing to Brittany and Erin…and the fall pledge 
group…"

"Exactly."

Tracy paused as she looked at Lisa's latest entries for Brittany and Erin.  She 
commented:

"Of course, you know that you're not gonna have as much free time as you 
thought.  Your fellow pledges are gonna get to relax.  Not you.  After you swear 
in tonight, you're gonna hit the ground running.  Remember Brittany and Erin?"

Tracy tapped the computer screen displaying their training records:

"Tomorrow I want them to sign their pledge contracts.  Now that they've passed 
their classes and are eligible to pledge, we've got to get their status in the Four-
Beta house legalized ASAP.  For one thing, I want to bring them under our health 
coverage plan so they can get some counseling about their drinking.  We've also 
got to finalize their separation from their old sorority.  You know the other 
sororities are still trying to force us to give them back, and President Alexandra 
has had to put up a real fight to keep them with us.  Once they're signed up as 
pledges, I think that'll take a lot of the pressure off her, because once a pledge has 
signed a contract we can't give her up, even if we wanted to.  Right now they 
don't have any legal status with us.  Once they sign the pledge contract, they will.  
You follow me so far?"

"Yes."

"Here's the deal as far as you're concerned.  Since I don't know who's gonna be 
taking my job as Pledge Mistress in the fall, I need to put your name on their 
contracts as 'acting Pledge Mistress'.  Until further notice, I need you to be charge 
of those two, and I want to formalize that arrangement on paper."

"…until the new Pledge Mistress gets elected?"

"…until I decide they no longer need you as their mentor.  To be honest, I don't 
know when that'll be.  Right now you're the person for the job, and the reason I 
say that is not only because of their improvement, but also your training log 
entries.  So far you've done a very good job assessing their needs and 
documenting their progress.  I couldn't have done it any better.  It's obvious you 
give a damn about them, so until further notice, starting tomorrow morning their 
training's gonna be your show."

With that Lisa and Tracy went to the pool.  They sat down next to each other in 
chaise lounges in the shade, enjoying the peaceful hot summer afternoon.  The 
three freshmen were in the pool with the two pledge prospects and several 
sophomores, playing an impromptu game of water volleyball.  Lisa glanced over 
at the Pledge Mistress, only to see that she had fallen asleep.

I wonder how much sleep she's gotten over the summer, wondered Lisa to 
herself.  A lot less than us, that's for sure.

With that Lisa opened the Pledge Mistress manual to a chapter titled "Pledge 
discipline, motivation, and morale."  She started reading, in preparation for the 
huge responsibility that awaited her within just 24 hours.

----------

At 9:00 that night the entire membership of the sorority crowded into the sitting 
room for the formal vote that would bring four new members into the sorority.  
Lisa was surprised that the women were wearing casual clothing, but later found 
out there would be a break afterwards to prepare for the swearing-in ceremony at 
midnight.  Once the women were seated, Tracy led her pledges single-file to the 
president's podium.  Like her pledges, Tracy was still naked.

The pledges lined up on the right side of the chapter president and stood quietly 
while Tracy summarized the group's training during the summer.  The sorority's 
social director read aloud the pledges' grades, Four-Beta training scores, and their 
PT scores.  She stepped away from the microphone, turning it back over to the 
chapter president.  Alexandra gestured towards Lisa:

"I believe that Pledge Lisa Campbell has proven herself and will become a valued 
member of our community.  Those of you who agree with me, please raise your 
hands."

Everyone's hand went up, and with that Lisa was voted into the sorority as a 
member-in-full-standing.  Alexandra's comment and the unanimous vote were 
repeated three more times.  Even Kathleen received a unanimous vote.  Maybe 
she wasn't the most outgoing person, but certainly she had proven herself with 
athletics and knowledge of the Four-Beta Sorority.  Her personality not 
withstanding, she would be made welcome, become part of a group, and finally 
find her place in life.

----------

Lisa wondered if the Tri-Alphas would be invited to the swearing-in ceremony.  It 
turned out that would wouldn't be, for a very simple reason.  By Four-Beta 
tradition, for new members to be taken in the entire membership had to be 
present, and everyone attending the ceremony had to be naked.  Eighty nude 
women would be gathered in the sitting room, which was dimly lit by candelabras 
placed behind the president's podium.

The pledges knelt in the basement for the very last time to allow Tracy to 
blindfold them and cuff their hands behind their backs.  Elaine and four 
sophomores came down the stairs and stood at attention in front of the Pledge 
Mistress.

"Pledge Mistress Tracy.  The chapter president has informed us that with you are 
four women who have qualified to join our community."

"That is correct, Sophomore Elaine.  Please do me the honor of taking them 
before President Alexandra and the Four-Beta chapter."

"Very well, Pledge Mistress, we shall do you that honor."

A sophomore guided each pledge up the stairs to face the president's podium and 
pushed her into a kneeling position.  Once the pledges were in place, President 
Alexandra and the other officers walked into the room and took their places at the 
podium.  Like the pledges and everyone else about to enter the room, they were 
completely naked.

The members filed in next, first the seniors, then the juniors, and finally the 
sophomores.  Brittany and Erin also would be present, but would have to wear 
blindfolds and sit in chairs in the back of the room.  They would be allowed to be 
present at the ceremony, but not watch it.  Like everyone else, they were required 
to undress before entering the room.

All of the sorority's members knelt once they had accommodated themselves by 
class.  Upon seeing that everyone was kneeling, President Alexandra rang her 
antique hand bell and summoned her Pledge Mistress.

"I understand that in this room are four women who have completed the first part 
of their life's journey with the Four-Beta Sorority."

Tracy knelt.

"Yes, President Alexandra, my four companions have proven themselves worthy 
of joining our community."

"We are pleased to hear that, Pledge Mistress."

Alexandra then turned her attention to the entire membership.

"We must raise our voices in celebration."

What happened next was bizarre and somewhat frightening.  The sound that came 
from the 80 kneeling women was not a chant, or a song, or even a cheer.  Instead 
it sounded something like an air raid siren or a tornado warning.  It was a long, 
deep-throated wail that went on for about 10 minutes and did not die down until 
the members had exhausted their voices.

When the wail died down, the pledges heard Tracy's voice.

"President Alexandra and members of the Four-Beta Sorority, my pledges have 
earned the right to bear the mark that will end their time of trial.  Their time of 
trial began with the mark, and will end with the mark.  I request permission to 
release my companions from their bonds, so that they may receive the mark and 
become one with the rest of us."

"Please release them."

For the second time the strange wailing filled the room as Tracy took off the 
pledges' handcuffs and blindfolds.  She tossed the handcuffs to the side of the 
room, but handed the blindfolds back to their owners.  Once Tracy removed the 
final blindfold the wailing abruptly stopped.  The pledges looked up and realized 
that Alexandra, the other officers, and everyone else in their sight was naked.

Tracy handed Lisa a pair of scissors.

"Cut your blindfold in half.  You don't need it anymore."

"Yes, Pledge Mistress Tracy."

Lisa cut her blindfold and handed the scissors back to Tracy.

Once each pledge had cut her blindfold, Tracy ordered Lisa to stand up, turn 
around, and face the members.  All those kneeling women made a very eerie 
sight, with their bare bodies faintly illuminated by the dim candlelight.

Tracy picked up her riding crop and positioned herself in front of Lisa.

"Lisa Campbell, to finalize you passage into our community, you must bear the 
mark.  Do you wish to receive the mark?"

"Yes Pledge Mistress, I wish to receive the mark."

"Very well, you will kneel before me for the very last time as my pledge, and you 
will be marked."

Lisa did as she was told.  She took a deep breath and gripped her knees as Tracy 
tapped her with the riding crop.  Three strokes on her front left shoulder, about 
halfway between her breast and collarbone, was how her pledging experience 
began.  Three strokes in the same spot was how her pledging experience would 
end.

CRACK!

Lisa trembled and winced as a flash of white-hot pain seared into her.  As Tracy 
waited for the burning to mount before delivering the second stroke, the sorority 
members wailed for a third time.  Through her pain Lisa glanced at the faces in 
her audience, taking comfort in knowing that everyone in the room had gone 
through the same initiation ritual.  She took a deep breath and waited for the 
second stroke…

CRACK! 

As the pain rapidly intensified, Lisa put every bit of will she had into suppressing 
a scream.  However, tears began rolling down her cheeks. 

One more...One more...One more and then...

CRACK!

"Uh...Uhhh...."

Lisa gritted her teeth and trembled as the pain continued to mount in her shoulder.  
As she continued trying not to scream, the wailing from her audience intensified.  
The noise abruptly stopped when Tracy raised her hand.

"Lisa Campbell.  Get off your knees.  I no longer have the right to demand that 
you kneel before me.  You have proven yourself and are now my equal."

Lisa struggled to her feet, her mind still mostly occupied by the burning welt 
rising on her shoulder, that angry patch of red on her skin that made her eligible to 
take the final Four-Beta oath.

One by one Lisa's companions went through the same ordeal.  Cherine, the pledge 
that had been the most frightened at the beginning, made it through the strokes 
without a sound, although when she stood up her face was streaked with tears.  
Kathleen was the most stoic of the group, keeping her eyes fixated on her wailing 
audience and showing no reaction at all, other than slightly flinching each time 
the crop made contact.  Bernadette started crying after the second stroke, but 
managed to hold her position until Tracy was finished and she was told to stand 
up.

A few minutes later Alexandra was back at her podium, ready to administer the 
oath for new members.  The Four-Beta oath somewhat surprised Lisa.  She had 
expected to have to repeat a lengthy statement honoring sisterhood or upholding 
the integrity of the Four-Beta sorority, but instead the oath was very short:

"As a member of the Four-Beta Sorority, I swear to honor those who came before 
me and stood where I'm standing now.  I will do so by using the gifts with which I 
have been blessed to bear honest witness to the times in which I live."

To a Four-Beta, the phrase "bear honest witness" was very significant, because 
the term entailed an entire lifestyle of doing everything possible to improve the 
lives of the people whose lives intersected with those taking the oath.  That 
included not only a lifetime of speaking honestly, but also making personal 
sacrifices for friends, family, and strangers, developing one's mind and continuing 
to learn throughout life, and using any acquired knowledge and skills to fight the 
strong and defend the weak.

The Four-Betas did not need an elaborate oath for their members, because they 
understood that what mattered most throughout a person's life were her actions, 
not her words and promises.

