Apprentice White has generated quite a lot of excitement within the upper echelons of The Brotherhood. We’ve been watching him closely and we’re unanimous in the belief that the boy shows real promise. Master Snow’s feedback from the Apprentice’s initial stages read like a love letter and, for some time now, the rest of us Masters had been jostling to further investigate the boy's obvious potential. My opportunity to do just that arose very suddenly when the boy was selected for anointment. I happened to be in a position where I could offer to oversee the ceremony, much, I assume, to the chagrin of Master Snow, who I’m pretty sure would have been much happier to have kept young Apprentice White to himself. The boy certainly didn’t disappoint close-up. He was blond and blue-eyed with almost flawless skin. He came across as being quite confident and self-assured, but a few minutes in his company and you could realize this young Apprentice was actually quite shy and nervous. He was plainly eager to please—in short, exactly the sort of boy we want. He seemed very nervous as he entered the chamber. These sorts of rituals can be overwhelming for the Apprentices; the anointing ceremony is all about purity. He is stripped of his clothing and instructed to wear a white robe. We, as Masters, are dressed in white formal clothing which is meticulously cleaned and prepared for us by chamber staff. The well-tailored, white suits which we wear are the clothes of masculinity, of superiority, and of carnal conquest. Our ties must be very carefully knotted. The bottom “v” must hang just below the waistband of the pants. It is, after all, an arrow which points towards the crotch and dares its viewer to question what is stirring within...