Chapter 1
Cassie stood outside the entrance to her dormitory and took a deep breath. She still couldn't believe that she was here. Lashmore University, an elite liberal arts school tucked away in a sleepy town in upstate New York. This school could boast more Fortune 500 CEO's, judges, and politicians than any of the ivy league schools. The wealthy and powerful sent their kids here to network and connect with each other so that they, too, could go on to be titans of industry and government.
Cassie couldn't help but feel like an outsider. She was neither wealthy nor powerful. Her mother had abandoned her as an infant. Cassie grew up in an orphanage with few friends and no family. Despite her obstacles she did well in school. When she turned eighteen she was sent out on her own. Life was hard. She worked two jobs while attending school full-time at the local community college. After receiving her associate's degree she wasn't quite sure what to do next. She applied to a few universities, but unless she could find a scholarship there was no way that she could afford to attend.
That's why Cassie was stunned when, out of the blue, she received a letter from the admissions department of Lashmore. She had been accepted, and not only that, but an anonymous benefactor had awarded her a full scholarship including a small stipend for room and board. There was just one catch. The scholarship was contingent upon Cassie being accepted into one of the campus sororities by the end of her first year. If she failed then she would need to pay back her entire tuition, a sum large enough to leave her in debt for a long, long time.
But this did not deter Cassie. This was the opportunity of a lifetime. She had every intention of joining a Greek organization anyway. It was well known that most of the networking among students at Lashmore was done at the after school parties rather than in the classroom. If you wanted to succeed then you would need to join a sorority.
Now, staring at the intimidating gothic architecture of her dorm building, Cassie felt the full weight of her situation. This next year would determine the entire course of the rest of her life. She grabbed her large duffel bag, containing all the possessions that she had in this world and entered.
As she walked down the halls she couldn't help but feel like she didn't fit in. The other students were all decked out in designer clothes, unpacking their expensive computers and high-end furniture. She shuffled down the hall until she got to her room. She pushed the door open and found herself face to face with her new roommate, Mei Lin.
Mei Lin was a beautiful, petite, Chinese girl. She was just over five feet tall, though she always wore high heels regardless of the occasion. Despite her small frame she hid a set of large firm breasts beneath her designer silk blouse. Cassie couldn't help but admire the girl's toned legs as she strolled over to shake hands and introduce herself.
Mei Lin was from Shanghai. Her father was a newly minted billionaire who made his fortune in real estate. Despite initially seeming like a very timid and submissive girl, Mei Lin immediately opened up to Cassie. Despite all her advantages Mei Lin had had a hard childhood. Her parents had impossibly high expectations for her. Nothing but the best would suffice. She had to be top of her class. Poor grades were punished severely. She didn't have many friends because her free time was spent with tutors teaching her to play violin and piano, or drilling her on her English pronunciation.
Mei Lin would be the first person in her family to attend a university. And Cassie was relieved to hear that Mei Lin's strict father had demanded that she join a sorority. This meant that Cassie would have someone to go through the process with her. The two girls quickly became friends as they chatted the night away.
The first week at Lashmore was both exciting and anticlimactic. Cassie attended classes, meeting her professors and fellow students. The latter were rather cold and unwelcoming. They could tell by looking at her that she didn't belong. It's not that Cassie was unattractive. It was quite the opposite. With her long red hair and sparkling green eyes she could turn heads anywhere she went. But she couldn't match the fancy clothes, jewelry, expensive makeup, and plastic surgery that the rich people around her had at their disposal.
The Friday night before her first weekend at Lashmore was the time she was truly focused on. There was a meeting for all the students who wished to rush a fraternity or sorority. Cassie filed into the auditorium and found Mei Lin. She sat down beside her and looked around at all the other students seeking to join an organization. There were more people than she was expecting. This made her concerned that the competition might be stiffer than she thought it would be.
The presentation started. A strict looking woman in a grey power suit strolled onto the stage and surveyed the crowd.
"Good evening, students," she began, "I am Dean Blackwell, head of the business department and faculty liaison to the campus Greek organizations. You are here because you wish to join one of our elite and historic clubs. Each of the chapters at this university traces its history back over two hundred years. They all have many proud traditions and rites, which I am sure you will become familiar with in time."
"The Greek organizations at this university are not like the ones you will see at other institutions. Sure you will find some similarities, but you will find even more differences. For instance, all our organizations are coed. You can think of them as more of a social club than a fraternity or sorority. You may have tried to learn about the chapters online, and I bet your searches turned up very little. This is by design. The goings on of our students are kept strictly private. What happens at Lashmore stays at Lashmore. The rites and rituals are to be kept confidential. Any student who feels the need to share what they know will quickly find themself in substantial legal jeopardy and will be expelled from this institution. We are very serious about this."
The dean's speech cast a chill over the audience. The excited smiles turned to hard faces. Cassie was beginning to feel the gravity of the situation. She had, indeed, tried to find out whatever she could about the organizations but everywhere she looked turned up frustratingly little. She couldn't even find the name of a single member of any organization.
"It appears that we have a pretty good turnout this year," the dean continued. "By show of hands, how many of you are legacies? That is, you are applying to the organization that your mother, father, or grandparent belonged to."
Nearly all the hands in the room shot up. Cassie's anxiety increased. Would there be any place left for her?
"Very good. For those of you who are applying to a fraternity with your legacy status the process is fairly straightforward. I'll ask you all now to leave the auditorium. Outside on the quad you'll find a representative of your club. Go there and you will receive further instructions and be welcomed in to your new fraternity."
Cassie stared in disbelief and shame as nearly every student in the auditorium stood up and filed out. By the time they had all gone she was left looking at fewer than a dozen people. They were all ushered to the front of the room.
"You few are our newbies," the dean said with a menacing smile. "The path for you is a bit more complicated I'm afraid. As none of you have any knowledge of the clubs, we have a special pledge program for you. You will rotate among the houses, spending four weeks as a pledge for each. At the end of each pledge period the members of the house must agree that you are worthy to go on. If any house does not approve then your pledging is over and you may not join a fraternity this year. If you make it to the end of the year then you will be assigned to the organization that you are a best fit for."
Cassie listened in disbelief. She would have to win over practically every student on campus in order to be accepted. It seemed an impossible task to her.
"I have said my piece," Dean Blackwell continued. "If you have any questions then please address them to your student navigator. Here she is now."
The dean made her exit as the most beautiful woman Cassie had ever seen walked towards them. Her long legs were accentuated by a pair of sexy red velvet pumps. An elegant lowcut black cocktail dress hung to her curves in all the right places. Her long black hair fell neatly down her back, nestling against her curvy, toned ass. But her most striking feature was her piercing blue eyes. Cassie felt like those eyes could cut glass with a focused stare.
The woman walked up to the group and, addressing no one in particular, began, "I am Jessica Chambers. I will be your Greek student navigator this year. I will follow along with you as you move from house to house, ensuring that all rules and traditions are followed. I am not your mommy. Don't come running to me if you feel like you're being treated unfairly. You are adults. You are expected to handle your own problems. Are there any questions?"
Cassie had dozens of questions, but under the withering gaze of Jessica she found herself at a loss for words. The other pledges were likewise cowed into silence.
"Good. Now we'll start off right away with one of our school's longest running traditions," she said with a devilish grin. "The new pledges are to go streaking across the quad."
There were a few gasps among the group, and several dopey grins on others, particularly among the men. Cassie could already feel their stares and she hadn't even taken anything off yet.
"Well, come on. What are you waiting for?" Jessica urged. "The others are already waiting for you outside."
Cassie breathed a sigh of relief as she shrugged herself out of her sundress and kicked off her shoes. At least with the other pledges joining them she could blend into the crowd. She unhooked her bra and slid out of her panties. She tried to avoid making eye contact with her fellow pledges as they jogged to the back of the auditorium.
Cassie flung open the doors with a surge of adrenaline expecting to find herself among a hundred naked legacy pledges awaiting them outside. To her shock and dismay they were all fully dressed. The sound of the auditorium doors slamming open drew the attention of every person in the crowd to the naked pledges. Cassie blushed bright red and froze.
Jessica caught up with the group after calmly following behind. "Oh," she said. "You didn't think that the legacies would be joining in, did you?" She shook her head admonishingly. "No, they are special. They don't really count as pledges. Anyway you'd better get running. I bet you'd like to get this over with."
Cassie didn't need to hear another word. She took off down the stone steps through a gap in the crowd. She was greeted with whistles and catcalls as she pushed past. She even thought that she saw the flash of a few cameras as she ran as fast as she could.
To stay in shape Cassie had spent a lot of time running in the past. Now, with what felt like the eyes of the entire campus upon her, she ran like a gazelle. The other pledges lagged behind as she dashed ahead through the quad. She dodged past several pleasantly surprised pedestrians as she ran. Soon she found that she had outrun all her companions and was alone in front of the student union.
She looked around behind her expecting to see them catching up behind her, but no one came. Had they all chickened out? Did she make a wrong turn somewhere? Standing there naked and alone made Cassie feel all the more exposed. The adrenaline had long since worn off. She quickly dodged around the corner of a nearby building to decide her next move.
Just then a dozen or so faculty members exited the building right in front of her. Cassie shrunk down low behind a bush, hoping to avoid their notice. She recognized one of the faculty as her history professor. She certainly didn't want to give any of these people the wrong impression of her.
Several of the professors lingered outside of Cassie's hiding spot chitchatting for what felt like an eternity. Eventually the gathering broke up. Cassie dashed out of her spot and sprinted back to the auditorium. By now the assembled students had broken up and gone back to their residences. Thank goodness for small favors, thought Cassie as she ascended the steps to retrieve her clothes. She got to the large double doors and pulled. They didn't move! They were locked!
Now what? Naked. Alone. The only option was to run back to her dorm. She kept her eyes cast down the entire way as she tried to avoid people along the way. But she couldn't ignore the giggles and whistles. When she got to the building she realized that she didn't have her key. Her face blushed bright red as she sheepishly strolled into the lobby and approached the guy working the front desk.
His jaw nearly hit the floor as Cassie explained the situation, all the while his eyes remained glued to her chest. Despite a lack of identification he eventually agreed to let her in. When she got back to her room she found Mei Lin sitting casually at her desk reading a textbook.
"What the hell happened?" Cassie demanded.
Mei Lin looked up from her book. "After you took off at a sprint Jessica told us that we could just go halfway across the quad and then turn around. We tried to get your attention but you were so far ahead that you must not have heard us. I waited for you back at the auditorium but you never came. After a little while a maintenance guy came and said that he needed to lock up the building. I brought your stuff home for you."
Cassie felt like a complete fool. How could she show her face in front of these people again? This was a total disaster.
"By the way," Mei Lin added. "Jessica gave us our assignment for our first rotation. The pledges have been divided among the houses. You, me and another girl are to report to Pi Sigma Sigma next Friday."
Cassie threw on some clothes and sat down unhappily on her bed. It didn't really matter if she had humiliated herself in front of the entire campus, she had no choice but to press on.
