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 Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 10:05 am
First he could not believe that he was a father, then he could not believe that there were five and now... he couldn't believe how big they were getting. It hardly seemed any time at all since they had been scraps of fur at their mothers' teats… Kalain looked over the little ones with not a small measure of pride though the guilt, the pain, still tinged the edge of his happiness. That was not for today, though.
Today was for the shrine. He'd not taken the pups out much past the den, yet, not done more, really, than corral them as they played, tugged at his tail and ears. He had not yet begun to tell them the stories - of their past, the lands from which their pack had come, their introductions to the gods.
Each had been named a few days after birth - a mix of old names to remember those past and some new to celebrate their new home - it had been the first ceremony of which the pups had been part of but one of the few in their lives which would not happen at the shrine.
The shrine held memories for Kalain. Good, bad, embarrassing. New as it was, this shrine held greater meaning to him than any other had. Any shrine should be the heart and soul of a pack, and any wolf in the pack should know and feel it from their youth and that was his misson today.
He turned, nudged and cajoled the small pile of pups who followed him at a sedate pace. "Come on, we'll not get there until dark at this rate!" he smiled.
Orion snuffled forward, nose to the ground. He had picked up the smell of something in the grass and was intent on following it. His father's chiding, though, made him give up his 'prey' and scoot forward to catch up.
His silver-violet eyes mirrored those of his mothers, but there the resemblance stopped. His coat, his markings… one could see where they had the resemblance to his parents' but as a whole, the effect was to make him look quite different to both them and his siblings. This didn't bother him too much, though: nothing had given him any reason to imagine different was bad.
Cora was one of two - a twin to her brother in every way but their gender - both were also quite large for pups their age - tending after their mothers side, perhaps, than their father's small stature. She was following right at her father's heels, eagerness emanating from her. She adored her father and it hadn't entirely bypassed her notice that he was something 'special' to their pack. She wanted to be special too!
Scampering as fast as she could, she shot ahead of her father's slowed pace towards the tree line.
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 10:27 am
Ithil stuck close to their father as well, her pale eyes darted here and there. She took after her father in his smaller stature, petite as she was though she was inquisitive about every plant she saw, wondering what it was called, maybe even if it were useful for something. She knew they were headed to a special place, her little tail quivering she looked up to her father. "Where are we going Father?" she asked in her quiet little voice. She couldn't wait to see where he was taking them, she wanted to see the special place.
She looked up to her father, loving what he did for others and wanting to do the same and help. She liked the idea of how making others feel better made them happy, it was a good thing to make others better. She watched her sister Cora shoot ahead, but stayed back near her father, she preferred not to try and get ahead, she had trouble enough keeping up with the others because of being so small.
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 4:59 pm
It wasn't just the girls who wanted to take after their father. The shaman of their pack, Kalain was a rolemodel to Kevarian. Someday, Kevarian wanted to be powerful like his father was, and have the gifts he did. But that was up to whoever decided that kind of thing, not Var. He said nothing when his father suggested they all hurry, but his black-toed paws sped up anyway.
As soon as he'd appeased his father, Kevarian's eyes moved back to Orion and then to the treeline. It was quiet out, surprisingly so considering the amount of noise from birds and other animals he heard from the den when his siblings were actually quiet enough for him to hear everything clearly. Maybe when his father explained everything to them, when they learned, Var could learn all of the rules of being a shaman and then the animals wouldn't fall silent when he passed. Already he sometimes liked to move away from his siblings and sit at the opening of their den, looking out at the world around them. This trip to wherever they were going was more than he'd seen ever, and although he would usually stay close to his father, this opportunity was too good to pass up.
Everything's big. His pink eyes scanned the woods around them, trying to memorize the lines of the trees and the curve of the ground. The song of a distant bird drifted over them on a west-bound wind, and Kevarian's ears perked forward, his steps slowing again as he was distracted.
His fur matched his mother more than his father-- and was closest to his quiet sister, Ithil-- but who said you had to look like a shaman to be one? Just because he was black and purple on white instead of white on black didn't mean he was any less capable than his twin siblings, or his gray brother, right?
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Posted: Fri Sep 11, 2009 2:03 pm
Like the other pups, Tolero had never been this far away from the den before. Everything he saw, everything he smelled, everything he heard was just so new and exciting.
A bright butterfly crossed the large pup's path and he stopped to watch it, eyes following it as it fluttered from flower to flower. After a moment, he bounded after it, getting almost close enough to touch it with his nose before it sensed him and flapped away again. When he turned to go back to the others, he realised he'd fallen behind a bit and his twin, Cora, was way ahead.
"Hey! Wait for me!" he called, scrambling after the rest of his family to catch up
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Posted: Mon Sep 14, 2009 5:28 am
Kalain dipped his nose to nuzzle against the small female at his side, smiling. "We're going to the shrine, dear" he answered, somewhat cryptically. He was sure they'd have heard it mentioned, but, as yet, they'd likely have no idea what it was actually like. He didn't want to spoil the effect of first seeing it by over-enthusing or describing it - they'd see for themselves soon enough.
His eyes flicked over all of his pups, constantly vigilant of their position and he slowed his pace as they started into the treeline, so that Tolero could catch up. "Stick close, it won't be long until we're there."
The path into the shrine was dense woodland, with tight shrubs packed in every piece of ground and stunted, gnarled trees clinging together as though huddling for warmth. A path had been made, though, by the passage of wolves. Their bodies had begun to influence the shape of the brush, pushing, breaking and shoving until it had formed a more easy route than the one encountered by those who'd first found the shrine.
Orion was awed by what seemed like huge trees as they towered over him. Their den was not near many trees and those which did grow were warped and stunted from the wind. Though by normal standards these were also rather short trees, to the pup they seemed massive.
Now, overawed, he clung close to his father's heels; his eyes were owlishly wide as he tried to see and remember every part of 'his' territory as he thought was expected of a brave, young hunter. Even if he was being escorted by his father...
Cora was excited and barely slowed her pace, tail wagging frantically as they pushed into the magical, tree-bound wonderland. It was, to her, a mosaic of interest, light, magic. The shrine. She didn't know what it was but she knew her father was connected to it in some way and that made it important to her.
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Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2009 8:50 pm
Ithil looked up at her father tilting her head slightly, but she didn't dare ask anymore questions. She knew it was better not to and see for herself. As the trees around her grew more twisted and taller, though not in truth very tall but quite large to her she continued to keep her closeness to her father. The sight over everything almost struck fear into her at the look of the twisted trees and shrubs, but at the same time they brought about a sort of awe that could not be put into words no matter how hard she tried.
It was a sort of twisted beauty that drew her in. If this was the path that led to the shrine then she could only imagine the true beauty that lie ahead of them. She longed to see what was ahead. but she knew this trip was special and should be taken with great respect and care, to not rush the experience but bask in the wonder that surrounded them, taking it all it and accepting it. her little tail spun in its excited circles as her pale eyes looked ahead, waiting to catch a glimpse.
She could feel the energy was what lie ahead as they continued to move closer toward the destination. it almost pulsed through her body like a living thing reaching out to her, calling to her to come and embrace her in it's warmth. The tingling started in the pads of her paws, stretching up through her legs and down her back, to the tip of her tail and ear and finally ending at her nose causing her to sneeze lightly. And just as suddenly as the feeling had started it was gone. Leaving her longing to feel it again.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 3:00 pm
After the gentle reminder to keep up, Tolero stuck close to his father's heels, determined not to fall behind again. Still, as they began to move into the gnarled, dark forest, he couldn't help but stare around himself with a childish awe. Everything was so..big. If he fell behind again, would the trees just swallow him up? The thought unsettled him a little and he scampered forward again until he was brushing against his father's leg. Nothing would happen to him as long as he was with his family, he was sure of that.
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Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 3:47 pm
Only a little further along the path and the clinging branches of the body-worn path gave way to a clearing. The Shrine, the heart of their land, their culture, their spirituality. It was a place of reverence and beauty - if not always silence.
In fact, as they approached, a small flock of birds squawked and squabbled their way into the air, leaving a few floating feathers to drift down onto the ground gently.
The clearing was dominated by a tree - a gnarled thing which might have once sat alone before the copse grew around it. It was a conifer of some sort, dotted with cones, but barely looked like its straight, tall, close-packed neighbours. the tree was not as high as it's neighbours, but it had a character to it which suggested a wizened, aged thing - something that had seen time flow past as it sat, quietly, and put its roots down, deep into the land.
Shrine's weren't always trees - in the far north there were not many and even fewer magnificent ones. Shrines were simply a place of beauty, a place where it seemed that the spirits touched the land and where, one would hope, a wolf could touch the spirits.
On the lower branches and the roots of the tree something odd seemed to have happened - there were splashes of colour, shining stones, feathers ticked into branches, even shells. Little tokens, they'd be brought by the others as decoration for the shrine. None were tokens given for ceremonial reasons or for 'luck' - except for one small purplish feather much akin to the one Kalain himself wore - he'd put it there when Mu'sha had told him she was going to have pups.
He smiled when he saw that, and looked over the brood around his feet and wondered if it was the token which had given him such a big, healthy family - or the fact they'd been conceived at the tree. He had never let himself hope that the outcome would be good...
This time, he had something else to place - something for those two - but it wasn't the time for that yet.
"This, my little ones, is The Shrine. You mustn't disturb things here, but you should explore and get to know it. It's a precious place for our family, our pack.
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Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2009 7:03 am
Something caught Kevarian's eye as the group moved on and he stopped walking, squinting at it. What was that?
With no thought to the rest of his family, Kevarian walked off towards the blur he'd seen, curious and feeling oddly compelled to discover if the movement had been something important. This Shrine sounded important after all, maybe this was part of that? Var wasn't sure, so he walked until he reached the tree he'd seen the blur vanish behind. He stared at the bark a moment, and then hunkered down low to the ground and crept around the trunk, peeking around to see what hid on the other side.
Nothing there.
Var frowned and looked up, searching for signs of a startled squirrel in the branches, but saw nothing there either. Something moved in the corner of his eye and he turned his head quickly, but the sight was gone by the time he was done turning his head. He stood up, tail wagging once, then ran towards where he'd seen the movement. Was there another pup out here, playing a game with him? Another animal maybe? He felt like he was having his tail pulled, and he wasn't sure if he was enjoying the feeling or not.
He followed the flits like that for a few moments, then in an uncharacteristic manner managed to crash through what appeared to be the only bit of underbrush in the area and into a small grove of trees. In the center stood one aged tree, smaller than the rest but thrumming with a commanding presence. It captured the pup's attention immediately and for a moment it reminded Var of his father before he realized that while he'd been chasing shadows, the rest of his family had arrived and were standing in the Shrine with him. He blinked slowly at them, then glanced up at the pretty stones, feathers, and trinkets in the tree. He let his eyes trace the curves and jagged edges of the leavings, wondering which members of their pack had put them there, and why.
Maybe it was my imagination? He thought to himself, then glanced behind him at the bush he was certain something was hiding under a few minutes ago. That wasn't all my imagination. Couldn't be.
Why, then, had it led him here if this was where he was going in the first place? Var's young mind tried to stretch around concepts he wasn't ready for yet, and he was getting the impression this wouldn't be the last time. His father had taken them to this place for a reason. If nothing else, Var was sure Kalain was about to teach them something important, something they might not understand until they were bigger. It was kind of exciting, especially if it gave Kevarian the opportunity to ask his father about the irritating thing that lived in this place. Even now, Var was sure it was watching him, waiting for another chance to play with him. The thought made Kevarian glance hurridly at the bush again, but it sat silently and Kevarian decided it was best that, for now, he do the same.
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Posted: Tue Feb 09, 2010 2:22 pm
The small femme's pale eyes took in everything around her, a sense of openness taking over her, she felt even smaller and yet so much larger. A trickle of energy seemed to fill the air around her. The tingling sensation reviving slightly and fading again. She carefully stepped forward as though scared to make so much as a single impression in the earth below her tiny paws.
Too much, so much, so big and wide, beyond, far beyond what her eyes would ever be able to see.
Ithil stepped away from her father and the safety that she often found by his side. She couldn't help but pull herself away from him as she felt the true energy of the sacred place, a place she knew would become something very special to her where she could seek refuge and look find peace and direction in her life when it would become too hard for her to handle on her own.
her little pink tongue moistened her nose, her eyes still searching, feeling, a sixth sense spreading out to feel everything around her, groping at the strangeness and yet the familiarity that they place brought to her. Though she knew she had never been, it felt calm and safe, just as a shrine should have felt.
Her voice lifted slightly "Father...this place...it's so, calm." she whispered, unable to find the words she truly felt inside.
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Posted: Thu Mar 04, 2010 9:48 am
Cora's eye widened. "Woooah" she gasped, indigo eyes sparkling with wonder and glee. It was like something from a dream - a wonderous land of opportunity to do great deeds and magic! The little female's sense of awe was influenced by her imagination and she wondered for what adventure her father had brought them here.
He'd certainly made it seem as though there was something very important here - maybe they would be whisked away somewhere to do magic against dark enemies of their family!!! The pup had barely left her den, and all she had pciked up was the sense of the respect the others had for her father and their belief or sometimes unease about the powers he held. She didn't really know what they were, but her fertile little mind had constructed a great world of imaginary foes and friends which was helping her learn and make sense of the world as she'd come to know it. It was all part of the learning process, of growing.
Today she'd be given an explanation different to her own, but no less wondrous, about how those in her pack and family held the world to work.
Orion was no less awed, but his curiosity was of a different type. He stepped forward cautiously, lifted his nose to scent the air, his silver-violet eyes scanning the glade. It wasn't that big, come to look at it, but it was infused with a certain something. He couldn't smell, see, or hear it. He felt it. It was like he suddenly had a sense deep in his chest which could detect whatever it was which made this clearing seem 'special'.
His eyes swivelled up to look at his father, from whom he had come to expect explanations of those things in the world which didn't make sense to him, or that he'd not come across before.
Kalain watched, as a father does, the varied reactions that his offspring had to the place. From shivers down little spines, to awe and then to fumbling understanding - each one, in their own way, could see that this place was different.
Sittting comfortably under the ageing boughs, the shaman smiled "I'm going to tell you about the spirits" he began.
Long ago, the world was cold. Colder than it is now, and barren - with no wolves, nor rabbits, no deer or even fleas! The stars looked down and they were sad, for they looked down on nothingness and watching snow and ice and rock is only fun for a short time. They came together and it was decided that instead of watching from afar, the stars would send one from each pack to the land to see if they could make it more interesting.
It was a hard decision, though, as once on the earth, the stars would not be able to go home. They were young, though, and brave, and decided they would do their best to create a spectacle on the land for their elders to see.
These were the first spirits and the most powerful. We call them Jaitain, Rhiavet, Toghelac, Sohenol and Kalain. Kalain is who I was named after" the male smiled a little wryly - it had been a point of contention for him when he was young.
"Sohenol acted first, bringing brightness and light to the dark, dull lands - the first sunrise and sunset and many thereafter were beautiful masterpieces created by that act.
Rhiavet came second, adding sparkling lakes, oceans, and rivers which turned the snow and glaciers into lifegiving water. It reflected the sun and made the world bright.
Toghelac acted third, blanketing the land which was not water in bright green trees, grass and leaves of all sort. He urged flowers to grow and their blossoms splashed across the world.
Kalain came next. He saw what had been done before him and knew he could not rival their spectacle. He thought about it for some time before realising that life itself was a spectacle. He used a little of his spirit to create the first life and it blossomed - creating a rich world full of creatures.
Jaitain was last. He saw all that the first three had done and then what Kalain had brought about. He realised that the living creatures would eat all of Toghelac's bountiful forests and drink all of Rhiavet's water so he gave the world death. It may seem cruel, but Jaitain's part in keeping the world as it should be was as important as the other spirits.
Each creature had been made with the tiniest bit of spirit from Kalain, though, diluted and divided as it crossed the generations - from mother to daughter, father to son. These small pieces, Jaitain sends back to Kalain to allow more to be reborn.
Each of them had put some of his spirit into his work and so all things are filled with those spirits. Those which Jaitain takes back, he gives to Kalain to be born again, when there is space and food enough for them. Some stay as spirits with the five, others come back, but they all affect and are the life around us all."
He looked down at the little ones around him. "This tree is a special place. We look for these places which are beautiful and special because they are likely to have been made by the spirits and catch the attention of those above us. Here we can talk to them, try to understand them and, sometimes, as things from them. such privileged should not be abused, but if you show respect to the spirits, they may decide to show you fortune."
It had been some time since he had been told, or had told anyone the 'creation' story of the northern wolf packs from which he had come - and such a simplified one, at that - the shaman was used to more nuanced conversation about the spirit world. Everybody knew the story back in their old lands, and it wasn't until you were bringing pups up or adopting strangers that you realised how much there was to explain. He wondered if he'd forgotten any aspect. It didn't matter - they would ask, if he had.
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Posted: Sat Jul 31, 2010 6:43 am
Kevarian looked down after his father had finished speaking, turning the story over in his mind. He knew there was something he wanted to ask, but he wanted to be sure he understood it all first, and that would take some thought. Later, he would ask his father questions if his siblings were gone or quiet and Kevarian himself had decided what needed asking.
The grove was pretty peaceful without the shadow stalking him. Maybe that would be part of what Var asked later. Maybe it had something to do with the tree.
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