Demon vs Nun Chapter 02 - Proverbs 3:33 (Patreon)

Proverbs 3:33 

The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the dwelling of the righteous.

“Hello? Who’s there?”, the voice from the other side of the south gate sounded female yet gravelly. A little window slid open and two ice blue eyes appeared.

“Hello. I am Ennlin from Prefor and I’d like to be a nun.”

“Oh, you certainly look like one.”, the gatekeepers view fell on her cleavage with a raised eyebrow, “are you mocking us?”

“No! I tried to make a robe myself, but I failed.”, her lips trembled as she looked down.

“Nah! Don’t sweat it, come in. It’s actually called a tunic and it’s supposed to cover you to the ankles, emphasizing your chest is a nice touch though.”, the nun's voice cracked a few times as she talked. She unbolted the gate to let the young woman in.

The entrance hall leading to another set of gates was decorated with big wall paintings depicting a kind of falling star coming down over a city on the left and an archangel shaking hands with some kind of decorated priest on the right. The angel had big white wings, but was nude except for a few leather straps.

“I am Sister Agneta, please follow me.”

A short look at her face showed a similar soft and clear skin as Dorothea had. A few long strands of remarkably rich pink hair peeked out of her headdress, distracting from her sky-blue eyes somewhat. Her lips were full, but not as plump as Dorothea’s. Sister Agneta wore garments much like the other nun though. A black veil and white cap that connected to that shoulder shawl but it was styled slightly different than the one she had seen before. She also wore white gloves with puffy upper sleeves and  a black robe, no... tunic! that went down to her calves and high heeled boots that went up to about the same height. This struck Ennlin as odd. She just got called out for wearing shorter than calf-length and the boots seemed also slightly off. The lower part of her back kind of resembled a sloped shelf. Her behind was prominently expansive and stretched her tunic drastically. Sadly, Ennlin was not allowed a lot of time to marvel at the nuns buttocks.

Together the did not go through the second gate, instead they went left, into the guard’s office. Ennlin was led to a room just behind the office. It was pretty small like she imagined a prison cell. There were a bed, a pot underneath it, a book on the nightstand and not much else.

“This is where the guard,” she pointed as herself, “sleeps. Please make yourself comfortable. I will get the prioress for you shortly.”

The door closed with the ominous sound of a key turning.

Ennlin settled down on the bed and looked around. The book, probably a bible, was useless to her as she could not read. At least the bed was comfortable as she found out lying down to rest for a moment. She closed her eyes and tried to sooth her excitedly racing heartbeat with deep breaths.

She shot back up with a jump as the key was turned and the door was pushed open. She sat up straight, put her dress in order as good as she could and looked to who would enter the room.

“I am sooo sorry you had to wait, my child, but I was in town to extract a demon of a pretty unruly kind…”

The new voice was velvety and well pronounced.

The nun who entered was just as beautiful as the guard. She was tanned, almost dark-skinned, but curiously some flaxen blonde curls framed either side of her face. The skin around her nose and eyes was smooth, but her eyes had that relaxed and prudent look one only acquires with time. The most astonishing aspect of the newcomer was her heavily pregnant belly. She must have been overdue for about two months. She was sweating and her face was extremely flushed, but it was hard to see due to her nubian skin tone. Her tunic stretched thinly over her stomach making her comparatively large breasts seem small in light of its immense circumference. Ennlin tried her best not to gawk.

“So, daughter, my name is Mother Frederika, I’m the prioress of this convent and I’m in charge of all business and personal decisions around, as long as Mother Jutta isn't here. You may call me “Mother Superior” or simply “Mother”. I'm told you are Ennlin and you want to be the newest member of our convent. How come?”

“Yes,Mother”, that came out astonishingly easy. “I've met Sister Dorothea who exorcised a demon from my father on Saturday. I want to be just like her.”

The prioress smiled matronly. She conversed with her for more than an hour. Actually, Ennlin did most of the talking and the nun just listened. She talked about the months of madness she and her mother had lived through, that she did not realize how everything lost color slowly as well as taste and joy in the demonic aura. Ennlin recalled how everything returned to clarity and brightness suddenly with the spectacular show of a nuns capabilities. She described what she felt to the best of her abilities. Every once in a while she found herself gawking at the pregnant nuns belly, most often when the prioress asked an affirming question or nodded in agreement.

Ennlin wanted to ask, but it felt so inappropriate.

“I'm not pregnant.”, said the nun after the short silence that indicated the end of Ennlins story. Was she reading her mind? Ennlin realized she must have gazed on their belly a few times too many. “You will know in due time. First, you need a bath. Then, Magdalena will show you around.”, she rang a bell Ennlin did not realize she had on her.

“I'm sorry, Mother. Does that mean I'm a nun, now?”, Ennlin was hopeful.

“Not yet, child. You will have to show dedication and discipline first. Then you may face the trial that marks the beginning of your new life as a nun. I approve of your introduction, but you yourself are the only one who decides if you really want to be a nun. Magdalena, come in, please!”

In came another nun. Her tunic covered her calves and her shawl did not have the two longer flaps over her breasts like Sister Agneta and Mother Frederika had. She was dressed just like Sister Dorothea.

She was either from the same place the prioress was from, or they had tanned equally as long. Now it dawned on Ennlin, that someone must be picking nuns by their beauty and breast size, because she was just as pretty in either sense as the other nuns. Magdalena’s strong nose and full lips perfectly graced her face, which was rather round but did not lack the cheekbones to enframe it perfectly. On Either side two demure jet black strands of hair led ones glimpse purposefully to her strikingly  blue-grey eyes, which seemed a bit off compared to her overall Nubian heritage.

“Hello, I am Magdalena.”, she just nonchalantly waved at Ennlin and looked to the side stubbornly as if the wall was more interesting than the newcomer.

Frederika turned to the young nun expectantly: “Magdalena has been with us two years now and she will show you the basics, won't you?”

Magdalena breathed in deeply and then hid the sigh in her answer, which sounded like one voice separated from its choir, slow and annoyed: “Yes, Mother Superior.”

“Very well.” The prioress said, then bid a curt farewell and then turned on her heels to take her leave.

Magdalena did not waste time either: “Come with me!” 

“Yes, Sister Magdalena.”

She stormed out of the tiny room and headed to the entrance hall. Ennlin had a difficult time keeping up being lead through the second gate perpendicularly into a corridor with a row of columns which was built around a central garden with a fountain and a sundial. As she looked up she could see the two huge bell towers of the chapel.

“Keep up!”, a tongue click was audible as Magdalena opened a room just a few yards away. Ennlin pondered why she did not see any other nuns but was not curious enough to get distracted further. 

“Get in!”, a quick wave marked where Ennlin was supposed to stand.

The room looked like a tailor's shop, but without the color. It was small, about double the size of the guard's sleep room. It had a workbench, a mechanical sewing table with a stool and a dressed mannequin with exaggerated breasts and hips. There were black and white fabrics and clothes everywhere. 

“This should fit you.”, Magdalena threw a bundle of leather straps at her, which she awkwardly caught and inspected. The nun looked around some more.

“What is this?”

“It's a harness. Put it on.”

To Ennlin the tangled leather straps did not look like something anybody would or even could wear.

“Here, Sister Magdalena?”

“Yes.”, Magdalena rolled her eyes.

Ennlin blushed hard as she tried to overcome her shame of being naked in front of a complete stranger let alone one who obviously would much rather be somewhere else. Knowing she would have to get along with her though and that she might misinterpret her hesitation as not wanting to wear a nun's clothing she quickly undressed.

She struggled with the harness until Magdalena helped, with a sigh. The nun just pulled a few straps and the harness went slack, then a few others and it was really tight. 

Ennlin moaned in discomfort: “That's too tight, Sister Magdalena”

“It fits. You are just not used to it. Pull your torso back, tilt your pelvis forward and lift your ass. Yes, like that.” Magdalena sighed again loudly within the last word.

Ennlin now had straps around her neck, over and under her breasts, two merging between her legs and coming up between her buttcheeks as one. Every strap connected to the whole in some way and it felt like a snug and soft suit.

“It’s supposed to promote a disciplined God-pleasing posture. Put this on on top.” she handed her a bundle of gray clothes abruptly. “Leave the scapular off until we’ve bathed.”

Ennlin slipped into the tunic and had to hurry and carry the scapular because Magdalena already left the room. Most of these colonnades were bland and undecorated, due to their intrinsic beauty perhaps, but some doors had writing on them like the one they had first stopped at. 

Walking with the harness continuously made Ennlin remember the instructions Magdalena had described. As soon as she relaxed her posture it would uncomfortably pull on her upper body and neck.

They continued in the same direction around the garden along the ground floor colonnade until they reached the bathing room. While hurrying after her guide Ennlin tried to memorize what Magdalena called the other piece: a sca… scapular? She also wondered why she was wearing gray.

The bathhouse was lavish to be precise. A metal pipe constantly bubbled forth water loudly falling into a huge pool. The pool must be easily suited to fit ten nuns with some room to spare and it had stairs from the opposite side of the rooms entrance, so a nun about to bathe would have to walk all the way around it to get in. The back wall had immense windows making up almost half of the space available.

“It’s warm.”, Ennlin meant the whole room. Magdalena compressed her lips and looked out of one of the windows for a while.

“Yeah, it’s because of this holy thing in the wall.”, She obviously had no intention of explaining anything and just vaguely waved her hand at the faucet. Ennlin took the hint, shut up again and tried to imitate what the nun did.

She stripped to her harness and put her clothes in a little alcove designed to keep anything not meant to get wet. Ennlin did the same. As she turned to walk past her Ennlin stared at her breasts. Her nipples were erect and adorned with a red metal ball on either side of each. Similarly, her areolae had four slightly bigger balls in a cross pattern around them.

"What are you staring at? Haven’t you ever seen body piercings before?" Ennlin awoke from her rude gawking and apologized, "I’m sorry for staring, but no, I’ve never seen piercings before. Does mother superior know you have them, Sister Magdalena?"

Again, Magdalena barely contained her annoyance clenching her fists as she walked to the stairs. Ennlin wondered if she had piercings elsewhere, but did not have the chance to fully look over the nun as she kept her back turned towards her. The aspirant watched and copied the harness clad nun proceed to the water.

“You have no clue, do you?”, she walked in as if the water needed no testing. Shortly after she splashed herself while standing up to her hips in the astonishingly warm water. Ennlin got in just as fast.

Ennlin copied Magdalena and could not help but persist: “No, I’m sorry. Sister Magdalena, please tell me.”

Enraged the nun swiftly turned to her: “Call me Maggie, for God’s sake!”, but obviously immediately regretted yelling. Her mouth dropped open and she held her hand in front while looking at Ennlin with wide open eyes.

Both were shocked, but Ennlin regained control of her tongue faster. So, to gloss over Maggie’s outburst, she just asked again. “Does she know?”

Magdalena said nothing at first and started soaping up her breasts. Then she nodded: "Sure, she’s the one that got them done. I’ll show you something else when we get to your room if you’re up for another shock to your delicate mentality." 

She turned away and soaped her groin. Ennlin tended to her own washing, thinking how unusual those pretty red balls looked on Magdalena’s breasts and what other surprises awaited her. 

“Will I get piercings, Maggie?”

“Of course.”, Maggie rolled her eyes.

“When?”

“Probably in about three weeks. You need to learn a few prayers beforehand.” Maggie's body language indicated the cusp of another yell making Ennlin shut up for the time being.

When she was done soaping they rinsed off the of lavender smelling foam and headed to their separate alcoves to dry and dress. While dressing Ennlin simply copied Maggie again. She put on her tunic first, then the apron like thing.

“So this is called a scapular?”

“Yes.”, Maggie clicked her tongue.

“Why am I wearing all gray?”

“You are an aspirant. You wear grey.”, Maggie clenched her teeth. Ennlin suspected this indicated her being new to the convent.

“How long until I become a real nun?”

“Three weeks until you can become a postulant, then another year until you can be a novice.”

“Oh.”, Ennlin hung her head low as she hoped for a faster introduction. Realizing this, Maggie stiffened her lips and raised her eyebrows for a second, but said nothing. Ennlin still wanted to ask about the prioress’ pregnancy, but did not want to push Maggie into another outburst, so she kept the question for later.

After they finished dressing Maggie looked out the window. Ennlin would have loved to have on a full nun's attire already, but she had to settle for the gray habit. She tenderly touched her breasts, the tiny waist created by the harness, and her pronounced hips.

“We have about an hour left. I'm supposed to show you around, but that's not nearly enough time.”, she turned back to Ennlin and let go of another tongue click, “Quit groping yourself.”

Maggie took Ennlin by the hand and rushed from the bathroom.

“All the corridors along these columns are collectively called the cloister. These are the kitchen and the refectory, the dining room.”

After sloppily pointing out the rooms they had passed already, Maggie turned and headed further along the square of columns, the cloister.

“Laundry room.”, another vague hand gesture, and another:

“This is the Infirmary. If you get hurt or you feel sick, go here. There is also a small hospice inside.”, obviously, Maggie wanted this to be over fast. She walked with big steps and stopped only as they reached a corner of the cloister.

“This is the apothecary’s room. She mixes remedies and tinctures from the medicinal and herb garden.”

Maggie pointed past a staircase to an exit, where the garden must be. Then she pointed further along the cloister’s square.

“This side of the cloister has just the gate to the chapel and inquisitorium. Further back are the library and a study, collectively known as our little scholasticate. From there you get back around to the entrance. Back there are also my workshop and the stables.”

Maggie pointed loosely to where the cloister made the next corner, but having said that, she quickly turned and rushed up the stairs. As Ennlin followed she realized to her surprise there still were no nuns to be seen besides Maggie.

On top of the stairs, where the cloister had its upper level, the nun further went along the square and pointed out the conclave, where the abbess supposedly meets with other dignitaries, as she explained. She added that it also had a balcony looking into the chapel.

“All the other rooms up here are cells for each sister.”, Maggie stated as they took the corner and passed the first of these.

“This is mine.”, she said as she suddenly stopped, “The next one is yours. Get comfortable. I’ll be right there.”

Ennlin could only hear a huge sigh as the nun declared: “Aah… this is so much better!”

It only took a few seconds of regarding her new home until Maggie was behind her.

“Turn around!”

The aspirant gasped as she saw Maggie mostly nude again. Besides her white thigh high boots made of a thin fabric she wore the scapular, coif and veil, but the tunic was missing.  Again, Ennlin tried unsuccessfully to not gaze at Magdalena’s voluptuous body as it was revealed to her. The nun still wore the piercings on her breasts and now Ennlin finally had a clear view of her nethers. 

They were pierced as well.

Just above the nub that made herself feel good the nun wore four tiny red balls, two on each side. Each of her outer lips sported two red metal rings and, most shockingly, a palm-sized red cross dangled from her nub’s surely painful piercing.

“This is how we usually dress inside the convent. We actually wear the tunic for outsiders only. There. Did I shock you?”

Maggie looked joyful for once with her hands behind her back and slightly bobbing up and down on the ball of her feet in turn making her pierced breasts bounce slightly.

Ennlin stiffened as she realized she was expected to answer but this just brought on the uncomfortable tight feeling of the harness convincing her to adopt the right posture again. 

“I don't mind being nude as long everybody is, I guess. But the piercings look painful. I don’t want those.”

Ennlin pointed at the dangling cross and shivered at the thought of it pulling on her sensitive bits.

“The piercings didn’t hurt, you can rest easy. While praying you only feel the pressure. But really? That scared you? Then have a look at this.”

With a maniacal grin, Maggie presented what she hid behind her back. It looked like a golden spinning top, but it was massive and had something similar to a coaster at its top end. 

A coaster! Ennlin remembered the second she saw Dorothea's naked upper body.

“Don’t tell me that goes in your…”

“It goes in your tits. How did you know?”, Maggie had her eyes wide, studied the aspirant's expression and made a step forward with the continued maniacal grin. She threw it up and caught it with the same hand like an oversized golden fruit. It looked very heavy like that. “This is a blessed plug. It’s meant to seal demons in your body in order to exorcise them.”

“Don’t you dare…”

Ennlin retreated to the end of her room.

“I’m joking! Every nun has their own and we are not supposed to trade. You are certainly easy to scare!”

Maggie looked happier now and as she turned to leave as she added: “The schedule is on your reading table. Keep to it and be on time to not get punished. I’ll be at my workshop if you have questions.”

Maggie ran off before Ennlin could tell her she cannot read. The plug was supposed to seal a demon inside her breasts. Ennlin wondered how they would get in there and clutched her breasts through the thick gray fabric. This also must be why the prioress looked so heavily pregnant and why Dorothea’s breasts looked so much bigger after what Ennlin had thought to be the exorcism already. They must have sealed demons inside their bodies. 

Scarred Ennlin tried to distract herself by having a futile look at the schedule she could only read the numbers of. Since she spent a lot of time on the market for her father, she was pretty good with numbers, so she easily figured out from the piece of parchment on her nightstand something was supposed to start at 10:00 in the morning. She went out to the cloister and looked for the sundial. The shadow was already on the ten marker. 

A bell’s gong from the belltower emphasized her uneasiness. Where was she supposed to go? She contemplated what to do as hushed chattering started after a door opened audibly below her.

Two mostly nude nuns walked from just underneath Ennlin through the yard to the other side of the cloister. Similar chattering came from underneath, but the corresponding nuns were not to be seen. If Ennlin remembered right, they came from the library. Maybe she was supposed to go there. If not, she might find someone who could read her schedule. She hesitated to think about getting undressed as Maggie said, and the nuns in the courtyard unknowingly have proven, but decided against it.

A few minutes later she stood in front of what she suspected to be the library. Ennlin could not read the sign, but the books she could see through the open door literally spoke volumes.

The aspirant hesitantly stepped in and looked around.

“Hello?”

“Hello!”, the voice sounded joyful like a wind chime. Ennlin could not see who answered, but she heard books being dropped, as this someone was hurrying to greet her.

“Sorry for the mess, but class just ended and I have not had time to… Oh, you are the new aspirant everyone is talking about.”

The nun coming around the corner of a big bookshelf was no exception concerning figure and beauty. With her big brown eyes she happily looked Ennlin over and smiled brightly. She was blushing hard, it was not discernable because of what, though. She wore just the same garb Agneta wore without the tunic, but there she wore more than Maggie, the addition looked like a second skin of very thin fabric on her legs and hips leaving her crotch open, with the easily noticeable palm-sized cross dangling from her pleasure nub and the other piercings Maggie had too. The rest of her outfit had the same puffy upper sleeves and the long gloves as well. Her breasts were bigger than the ones she had seen on other nuns up until now, kind of like Dorothea had after her father was exorcized. Like Dorothea, she even wore these coaste… plugs.

She had sealed one or more demons inside them.

Uneasily she replied: “Yes, I guess. I’m Ennlin.”

“I’m Bernadetta, but folks here call me Detty.  Aren’t you supposed to be in the chapel now? It’s working hours and since you are an aspirant, you should be training.”

“I’m sorry. I can’t read.”

“So you came to the library? Good choice, but wrong time. Come to me, when you are finished in the chapel and I’ll help you.”, she smiled joyfully and pushes her out the same way she came. 

Luckily the chapel was just a short way. She had passed the gates to it on the way to the library, but now that she actually looked in she was awestruck as she realized how immense and lavishly decorated it was. There was the entry hall with two reinforced gates to the right and left. They kind of looked like they much rather belonged into a castle instead of here. Still, the columns and walls had paintings on them and seemed to warn about sinning. They depicted nuns making love to demons and other nuns praying with plugs in their breasts.

“There you are!”, Ennlin jumped from the suddenly broken silence.

The nun who was obviously looking for her was just as nude and just as beautiful as the others. She wore no plugs in her big breasts and looked kind of chubby or pregnant but not as far along as mother superior, maybe five months along. Her face was blushing and just as stunning as the others, with her stern looking green big eyes, a few salmon red strands of hair and a beautiful small nose. Her lips were massive, adding to the size has her slightly agape mouth. Which almost did not move as she continued:

“Where have you been? We were supposed to start ten minutes ago. Follow me.”

From behind the nun was just as pretty. The scapular and gloves hid her shoulders and her arms, but Ennlin could see a toned, slim waist and voluptuous buttcheeks that bounced as she walked with the huge base of a plug wedged between them. The part visible must have been as big as the bottom of a beer mug and it made her cheeks churn around it deliciously. Now it dawned in Ennlin the nun must have a demon in her intestines. She tried to clear her head by shaking it, but failed and her gaze got stuck on the engraved plug again. She looked up searching for a distraction and found colorfully painted glass in the windows but could not make out what exactly it ment due to the distance. Also there were statues in places high on the columns normally reserved for saints and other persons of rank, but they embodied women resembling the

“Take a pew.”

She pointed with both gloved hands where Ennlin was supposed to sit, with an austere look. The aspirant sat down and hoped she did not notice how she had to tear her eyes away from the nuns butt. She bit her lower lip as the unknown nun knelt on the pew in front facing her.

“I am Charlotta and I will teach you how to pray and your first prayer for that matter.”

Ennlin already guessed her nickname to be Lottie. “Nice to meet you. I am Ennlin and I know how to p- “

“No, you don’t.”, her still stern look glinted and drilled right through her as a bead of sweat rolled down her cheekbone, “But you may show me.”

Ennlin got to her knees on the convenient knee rest. This brought her uncomfortably close to the nuns slightly swollen stomach and right under her ripe breasts with her head.

“What are you doing?”, Charlotta asked pulling a disgusted face.

“I am getting in position.” confused Ennlin looked up between the nuns huge breasts.

“There is no position needed. Sit down. You can pray in any position.”

Ennlin got up again and pondered how to come up with anything meaningful, while under the keen eye of a nun obviously dedicated to this. 

“Okay. Please God make me a nun.”

“Don’t pray for things you can achieve through work and diligence, that’s pitiful and quite frankly an insult to the Lord’s power.” 

With this in mind asking for something outrageous would probably not insult anyone.

“Make me the most powerful nun.”, Charlotta looked just as stern.

“A tad bit better, but you need to address the Lord, for he gives and you receive.” the nun closed her eyes, clenched her teeth and tried to suppress a moan but did not fully succeed.

“Dear Lord, I am your humble servant-”

“Again, pitiful. You are not humble. You want to be the most powerful nun, as you stated.”

Ennlin was frustrated by this point but made a last effort to reflect what she really wanted. Without thinking she started to pray:

“Dear Lord, I am your sword to wield against sorrow and bleakness, make use of me, make me strong, make me yours.”

Charlotta tried to hide a moan in what she said next: “That was... decent. With this kind of attitude you have a passable mindset for a functioning prayer.”, Charlotta looked more flushed than before and another bead of sweat ran down from her brow to her chin.

Ennlin wasn’t sure if that was a compliment but decided to take it as one. The nun obviously was preoccupied. Maybe because of the demon inside her?

The pregnant nun continued: “Now I want you to pray for a higher pain tolerance or not feeling pain, however, you want to call it. Keep your mindset and pray fast. The incrementality of prayers means merely one prayer, no matter how sincere, is essentially worthless if it is not reaffirmed and repeated. Repeating it in different wording and mindset also influences its effectiveness for the worse, so be precise.”

Ennlin closed her eyes and tried to pray just like before. 

“Dear Lord be my shield, be my skin 

and save me from all suffering.”

Ennlin felt strangely proud of this because it rhymed, but it obviously did not please her teacher. Her stern look lacked any sign of approval and also suppressed any sign of pleasure she fought so hard to hide earlier.

“Do you feel accomplished now, because of the rhyme? That was the most pitiful try yet. Rhymes distract yourself and God from the sincerity and value of the prayer. There is no poetry in praying. Address the Lord properly, ask for what you want, offer yourself and repeat.”

Ennlin’s heart sank, but she knew her stubbornness would not let her down. She contemplated how and realized a prayer is much rather constructed than composed.

“God Almighty in heaven, my body is the herald to your glory! Grant me the toughness to brave any agony to come.”

For a brief moment Charlotta’s eyes opened wide and a smile flashed over her lips but her stern look returned quickly after pressing her eyes shut and clenching her teeth for a second.

“Keep that up for the next hour.”, she announced coldly and made her way to the altar.

“Really?” 

Charlotta did not react to her question, so she was probably serious. Obviously, she might be all the time.

“Incrementality. Precision. Practice. You will be tested on this.” Charlotta did not even look at her as she opened the Bible.

“How will I know this works?”

Ennlin was puzzled on what this test might entail. Will she have to get up on a stand like an examination? Will she be placed on the altar, maybe even naked? How would they test her? Needles? Piercings? Knives? She shook her head to put her thoughts in order and started praying after she earned a demanding look from her teacher.

“You will see.”  

As Ennlin finally started she turned pages and kept reading. What came next was just as boring as Ennlin expected. She rattled off her prayer, one after another. The same plea over and over.

“God Almighty in heaven, my body is the herald to your glory! Grant me the toughness to brave any agony to come.”

Her eyes shut in concentration, she could hear Charlotta faintly change her standing leg and shift her weight on the wooden stage that elevated the altar. Ennlin suspected her to prepare a distraction, so she tried to focus inwards. She must have been just past her fourth hundredth time as she felt a tiny point of pressure on her left shoulder. 

This was the distraction, but what happened?

She kept on praying, but only made it through the prayer once until curiosity made her look.

In shock she saw there was a needle made of red metal in her shoulder stuck right through her gray habit and scapular, but shock quickly faded to astonishment. It looked odd to Ennlin, maybe because it did not hurt at all. I just felt like somebody was keeping his finger on the very spot the needle was sticking out. As far as needles go, it was a decent size for darning heavy cloth. The part she could see was about half a hand long and no thicker than a stalk of grass.

Ennlin wanted to pull it out, but was delayed more than a few moments she took to look at Charlotta who had sneaked to the pew in front of her again and obviously had stuck her.

Pain struck her like lightning. In reflex, she pulled the needle out, took it in her other hand and held the tiny wound on her left shoulder.

“Ow…, why did you do that.”

“I told you, you’ll be tested.”, she said with a hint of an amused smile, “And you passed. Barely.”

Only then Ennlin realized her prayers worked. She did not feel pain until she stopped praying and even the delay felt oddly long. It worked. Charlotta's stern look had pushed off the amusement from her face quickly as she added: “Please continue.”

A strange mixture of frustration and pride spread within the aspirant as she was determined to keep up the good work. Closing her eyes she began chanting again. Within minutes she regained the rattling rhythm of her prayer:

“God Almighty in heaven, my body is the herald to your glory! Grant me the toughness to brave any agony to come.”

Again she repeated the prayer over and over, but instead of getting bored her confidence increased. She prepared for another ‘test’ of course but having repeated her prayer for about the 900th time she wondered when it might come. At about a thousand a wave of goosebumps washed over her from head to toe, followed by a wave in a similar fashion that felt like fingers, some lingered where they had to… ‘drip off’, for lack of a better term, like her fingertips and her earlobes, but nothing significant happened after.

Not until the bell rung twelve and not until Maggie tapped on her shoulder.

“Hey, are you still praying for midday? You don’t have to stay in the chapel for that.”

Confused, Ennlin got up. She looked around, but Charlotta was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the always annoyed Maggie was here. Obviously, she was asked to pick her up.

“Where is Charlotta? She told me I was being tested.”

“Well, you must have passed, because she’s already in the refractory and you also almost missed lunch.”