A test of courage!

This was stupid. So, so stupid. Not scary, just stupid. At least, that's what she was telling herself.

Having just entered college at nineteen years old, she was delighted to find out about the Reptile Science Club. Not only could she put a scientific club on her college resume, but she could indulge in her lifelong fascination with all things lizard, dinosaur, and snake with fellow reptile nerds! Unfortunately, there was a caveat... As a tradition that lasted since the 80s, the college's Reptile Science Club required that all new members perform a "test of courage" as an initiation.

Eve Bronwen, despite her pretty name, was not a glamorous girl. At barely five feet tall, she was built slender and thin, with a slight and almost waifish frame and skin pale from being indoors reading. Her brunette hair was often kept tied in twin braids and her squarish glasses with their thick black frames gave her doe-like brown eyes a nerdy accent. With a flat chest and a ruler type body, she had little in the way of curves to speak of, though it definitely gave her a delicate and admirably girlish appearance. It was something she capitalized on with her manner of dress.

One for cute and feminine outfits, Eve was currently wearing a simple pink dress with red trim and a skirt that reached her knees. A beige cardigan over it covered her otherwise bare arms. A pair of simple white socks and pink-and-white sneakers adorned her dainty feet, while her hair was decorated with a little yellow and pink bow-shaped hair clip with a little cat head in the center. Her dress secretly hid a pair of white panties with strawberries printed on them and pink lace, while her matching bra was a meager 32A-cup. All in all, one word aptly described the innocent little geek: Mousy.

With her phone held up and light shining, she looked at the mouth of the cave in the woods just outside town. The construction site was just in sight over the treeline, but it was quiet due to it being Saturday. The cave was not well-known to the general population of town, but those familiar with the local geography, geology, history, Junior Explorer's Society, or Reptile Science Club knew it all too well.

Snake's Remains Cave.

It was this cave that she was to enter and camp overnight inside. It was an initiation that all who hoped to join the Reptile Science Club had to perform. She hefted her backpack over her shoulder, containing all the materials she'd need, including a tent, space heater, bottled water, and snacks. She'd heard many rumors about Snake's Remain Cave, but she was a girl of science, not superstition. This test of courage was stupid, not scary.

She'd keep telling herself that.