The Path: A witcher's tale

Chapter 7

They say the school of the cat is the most hated witcher school out there, and it is said that they worked hard to deserve that hate, as they went from monster hunters to hired assassins, abandoning the old traditions. I understand where the hate for these witchers came from, even their comrades in arms, other witchers, shun the actions committed by the school of the cat. The reason why most turned to killing humans for hire is because their training specializes in agility and light, precise blows, making them near-perfect assassins; meant to kill monsters, not people. Despite all this, not every Feline witcher is a hired blade, there are a few who retained the old ways and continued to hunt beasts, like they were meant to do.
Karadine is an example of this, she is one of the few females who have survived the trial of the Grasses, and she is also a cat school witcher who continues to kill monsters. If the males had a low survival rate, the survival rate for females was even lower. These witcheresses, as they are called, are only trained at the school of the cat, as women are naturally more agile and flexible than men. I sensed that Karadine is not the usual feline witcheress at the moment I met her. She demonstrated her prowess and experience in killing monsters when we took on a contract on an arachas in Velen. Her silver blade struck true and caused the monster to bleed heavily, but it was my blade, Bloede Bleidd, that finally felled the beast, by slicing off a leg and severed the head.
We split the reward and headed off, after a good dozen contracts, we decided it was time to clear her name. We started by going to a local Nilfgaardian garrison, and I scouted the premises during the daytime and spoke with the commander to question him about the alleged offenses committed by Karadine. He said that she was accused of the murder of various diplomatic officials. I told him that I would keep an eye out for this person and left the area. I told Karadine and we returned under the cover of darkness to clear her name, one garrison at a time, if that's what it takes.
We snuck in and she got into the commander's quarters and let me inside. I went to the commander and told him that I saw the supposed criminal, he asked where and when, and I said that she was right here and I was working with her. At that moment, Karadine emerged from the shadows and we confronted the man. After using axii a few times, we broke his iron will and called off the bounty on her head in this division. We decided to leave the issue alone for a while and return to killing monsters. Once we left the grounds, we ran into Ajax, who just happened to be in Velen at the time. Karadine was still hiding and because he was focused on me, Ajax didn't hear or see her. Ajax asked if I was going to winter at Kaer Morhen this year, to which I replied "Of course, maybe I'll bring a guest." Ajax bade me farewell and set off into the night.
Once he was out of sight and earshot, Karadine leaped out of the shadows and asked me what I was thinking, bringing a feline Witcher to a stronghold full of wolf school witchers. I told her I would smooth things over, so she shouldn't worry. That seemed to put her at ease, at least for now, and with the first snows of winter on the approach, we decided to start on our way to Kaer Morhen.
Once we arrived at Kaer Morhen, I told Karadine to keep out of sight, so we don't raise suspicions. She was fine with it and I went inside to greet my brothers. Marçin must have been recovering from a hunt, as I saw his waist wrapped in bandages. When I asked him what happened, he said that a group of bandits got the best of him for a moment. He didn't stop until the ground was slick with their blood. I understand that, I remember what I did to those bandits who murdered an entire village while looking for Karadine. There are two mistakes that only the greatest fools make; throwing stones at a hornet's nest and trying to cheat or attack a witcher.
Anyway, after greeting all of my brethren, we started drinking. But, that's when Ajax mentioned that guest I told him about, and got the rest of the lads teasing and jesting. I told them that I did bring a guest and that I would introduce them immediately. I stepped outside and got Karadine, I told her that whatever they say won't matter, I'll make sure they respect her as a fellow witcher. I stepped inside holding Karadine and braced myself, the first words that I heard were, "Why the hell did you bring a feline witcheress with you?!" I explained that she wasn't like the other feline witchers, she stayed true to the witcher ideals of killing monsters and not people. I also explained that she's a framed war criminal and I'm helping her clear her name. After that, everything seemed to calm down and they relaxed. I told her that there was a room nearby that she could rest if she wants. She said that would be a great idea, as she wasn't used to making the commute to Kaer Morhen.
Once she left the room, Ajax, the cheeky bastard that he is, asked if my sense of justice was the only reason I decided to help her. I told him that even though she is shapely and good at heart, the reason I was helping her is because she's one of our comrades in arms, a fellow witcher. Eskel agreed and got Marçin and Ajax to calm down when he said we'll drink another round. After all the fun and games, I spoke to Eskel in private and asked if we could induct Karadine into the school of the wolf, so she wouldn't feel like an outsider among us. Eskel, sensing the emotions behind my behavior, said that if he could find a medallion, she could be a wolf if she wanted to. I thanked Eskel and went to go see Karadine, she told me that she wanted to thank me for defending her. I said it was nothing, and I asked if she wanted to be one of us, a wolf. She agreed without hesitation, she said the school of the cat brought her nothing but shame and disgrace. I went and told Eskel, who luckily found a spare medallion lying around. He said that we would do it now as he gathered Ajax and Marçin.
When all 5 of us were gathered at the table, Eskel said we would be adding a new witcher to our ranks. When they asked if it was some poor soul taken by the law of surprise, Eskel was quick to say no, that it was a witcher, wanting to be inducted into our school. He told Karadine to rise and bestowed the medallion around her neck and said; "From this moment forward, you no longer belong to the school of the cat, you are now one of us, a witcheress of the school of the wolf!" Once Karadine sat down I proposed a toast to her new life, "Karadine!" We drank to her health and chatted the night away, making her feel that she truly was one of us, a wolf. We continued this revelry and bonding until spring, when Karadine and I set out one more.