The Crescent Prince

Chapter Seven

 " So much for being fine!" I yell at him as I run away from a wild boar. He just laughs. I run for a maple tree and start climbing as soon as a branch is in my reach.

" How is this part of the ceremony exactly?!" I yell as I cling to the trunk finally safe from the circling boar down below.

 " Oh, it isn't I just wanted to see if you would fall for it!" Noah yelled back.

" Seriously?! How would I know this wasn't part of it, of course, I fell for it!"

After a bit, the boar got tired of waiting for me to climb down and left. I finally climb down now that it is safe to and walk over the Noah trying not to laugh.

" You're covered in leaves and branches," He said as he broke out laughing. I clean out my hair then ask what IS part of the ceremony.

" It's a blood oath to the pack and you'll need to be marked as a mountain wolf," Noah said as he calmed his laughing down.

" When?"

" Tonight at dusk, that's tradition," He stated.

After our conversation, Noah left me alone until dusk. 

"It's time to become one of us," He said.

" Yeah," I quietly answered.

" You nervous?" Noah asked.

" Yeah," I said again.

He let out a light laugh before leading me to the lake that I didn't know was in the camp. He told me to stand next to him. We were in front of the whole pack. I looked out into the sea of eyes that were judging and disgusted to have someone like me become one of them.

" Brothers and sisters," Noah started.

" Thank you for coming, today our pack becomes stronger as we are welcoming a new brother. Yes, he may be different but he is a wolf at heart. With him, by our sides, we will have the strength to be rid of our foes once and for all. So let us welcome him with open arms!" At his words, the crowd cheered and howled while some glared and stared at me with hatred.

Noah turns to me and gives me a look that said " breath". I didn't realize that I've stopped breathing. I give him a slight nod in return.

He turned to the table behind us and picks up a traditional dagger with a wolf head on the pommel. Before he turns around to face everyone he whispers to me.

" What's your name?"

" Ethan Hunter," I answered.

At my words, he faces his pack with the dagger in hand. He holds it high above his head and proudly says. " Today we will welcome a new brother bound with the blood of every wolf before us!"

He then takes the dagger and makes a long deep cut on his right hand the blood dripping to the ground. He griminess slightly as he did.

" As the Alpha of The Mountain wolf pack, I recognize this outsider and make him one of our own!" 

He holds out the dagger to me, I take it from him and cut along my right hand as well until my blood falls the Earth.

" Follow my lead,"  he whispers to me.

He walks to the golden bowl with wolves running on the forest floor. Holds his cut hand above it until blood drips into it adding to every other pack members blood. After a minute he pulls back his hand and nods to me. I do the same as he did. 

He turns to me. " Ethan, you are now bound by the blood of the pack,"

The pack starts chanting, " Mark" until Noah put his hand up and everyone went quiet. 

" Elder would you please," He said gesturing to someone to the right of him. An older woman comes walking up with a basket.

" Hello, boy, welcome," She says.

" Let the marking begin!" Noah says.

The elder tells me to sit on a stool behind me and to roll up my right sleeve, I did as I was told. I sat there looking into the crowd taking in the new faces.

" You might feel a pinch," She spoke as she started poking me with a needle.

Oh, so that's how they mark us, tattoos.

It took her over thirty minutes for her to be done but once she was there was a two peak mountain on my bicep, red, but there.

" The marking has finished. He is officially a Mountain wolf now," He says smiling.  Everyone cheers for a minute then the crowd starts to thin until no one else is here besides Noah and me. I'm rolling down my sleeve as he walks up to me.

" So, how does it feel to be part of a pack?" He asks.

"It..feels good," I answered with a smile.