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It was time.

All the fruits of Afina's labour would finally come into fruition and she would get exactly what she wanted. Within the next few hours her children would take their rites and move from adolescence into adulthood. While Xenon could already see the hints of adult intelligence creeping into his children already, he would at the very least humour his mate with this. He had pledged himself to the ocean a long time ago and for traditions sake, it was fitting that his children do the same.

...That being said, he doubted if they failed that another tsunami would come, but he would sooner not tempt fate, particularly when he had such a vocal mate. Suffice to say that if he denied his offspring their Rites his ear would be chewed off and his a** would be kicked three ways from sunday. Well, it would be reasonably close to this at least as his mate had the ability to make her point known very quickly even if he tried to ignore it. Long story short, this afternoon he was just going to do as he was told.

Gather the children - Check.

Make sure the tide was out - Check.

Ensure that there were no ripetides hidden nearby where the children would do their rites? Well he had tried to do this but sadly riptides were beyond the realms of his vision. The water had seemed peaceful and the fish hadn't been disturbed by unusual currents so he assumed it would be fine.

With his own job done, he settled comfortably on the rocks and waited patiently for Afina to arrive. She had been murmuring about trinkets to give to the children and while he'd offered some input, he'd left most of the 'shopping' to his mate. Not to be stereotypical, sexist or otherwise inappropriate but she did have a better eye for that sort of thing than he did!

His mother was doing that 'weepy' thing again. Euphrates had seen it a few times in his life and they generally happened whenever she was trying not to be emotional. Alas it never worked out quite the way she wanted it to as her voice was always husky and low. Regardless, the adolescent lion knew that this wasn't out of genuine grief and as such, he could appreciate that he had nothing to worry about...his mother was just being, well, his mother. There really were no words to describe it beyond that.

Nevertheless it was with a small nod from his father that he stepped forward first, sizing up the ocean for a few moments and then taking a breath. He'd been swimming before, mostly in the rock pools where his father could fish him out with his big paws if need be, but today was different. This morning he was going to have to give himself entirely to the sea and given some of the horror stories he had heard, eh, it wouldn't have been inaccurate to say that he was anxious.

Another deep breath.

And then another...

It almost seemed as if he wouldn't do it and yet he did, with the slightest hesitation he padded forward into the ocean and began to wade further and further in. It was only when he noted that he was unable to touch the sand beneath his paws without going under water that he took another look back and then dove underneath. Pushing himself further and further into the depths, he remained suspended beneath the gentle tides.

Settling, he opened his eyes and gazed about at the hidden wonders that lurked beneath and just as he began to sense an urgency for air, a larger wave cast above his head and the pressure beneath the surface pushed him back to the shore.

Admittedly he didn't have the most dignified of landings as he was tossed up onto the beach, stumbling at least three times before he tripped and landed on his side but there could be no doubt about it that the ocean had accepted him.

"You really need to worry less," he heard his father remark in his usual, patient tones towards his mother.

Euphrates couldn't help but grin!

Sarcire watched her brothers with a nervous eye. Yes she'd lived her her whole life, but of course she'd never done anything like this before. The ocean was so big, even this beach was only a small part of it. At least, that's what she'd been taught. As Triton came back up the sand, the young lioness steeled herself to be the next one in. Taking dainty steps forward, she paused to test the water with a toe. Cold, salty, and full of a quiet power. Swallowing nervously, the grey and blue female began to wade in.

It was hard. The waves were coming at her, and she didn't have the same bulk as her brothers. As far as each step took her, she was pushed back half the distance.

But she wasn't going to give in that easily! Not just because the rites were so important to the pride, but because Sarcire wasn't that kind of lioness! Once she'd resolved to do a thing, she would do it and to hell with everything else!

The adolescent forced her way through the waves, lifting her forelegs higher and higher with each step forward. Suddenly she put one leg down on...on nothing! The second followed and even her back toes could no longer feel the sandy bottom. Sarcire swum out a little farther, marveling in the sensation, looking around and even pushing her head down to look in the water. The salt stung her eyes and nose, so she gave up on the down. She lifted her head again, taking a breath, only to get a noseful of water as another wave rolled in. Snorting, the young lioness glared at the offending water.

But...she was doing it! She was swimming! On her own! She could do this! And to think she'd been so nervous.

Sarcire sniffed in disdain at the next incoming wave and managed to get herself turned around to use its momentum to propel herself back to shore. Which was a lot farther away than she had realized. And was coming up a lot faster than she'd thought!

She didn't stumble as much as Euphrates had, but she had to wince as she put her first paw down awkwardly. It wasn't broken, but it felt painful. Still, she refused to allow that to taint her triumph as she stalked out of the water.

But once she was dripping behind her siblings, Sarcire licked the paw with a concerned look.

Nahuatl was actually sitting up on the sandy shore, keeping an eye on his siblings as they each one began to move toward the ocean and take their rites. This was a big day, especially considering how both sacred (and intimidating) the great ocean could be. While Nahuatl could swim, he had always been a bit of a lazy beast. Exactly how this was going to turn out would be . . . .questionable.

Still, he loved the great waters, and respected the fact that the ocean could give just as it could take away. Deep down, he was a little anxious about how things would turn out, but he hoped and prayed for the best. The fact that he wasn't flopped on the shore, as was his usual visage, proved that this was indeed a day to take seriously.

No longer would he be looked upon as young, for today he would prove his place as an adult. So far, so good. Everyone seemed to be handling their rights well enough. . . . He worried more about Baj and Sarcire, especially to see how they seemed to struggle. They were smaller than him and his siblings, but thankfully seemed to return without too much fuss.

Rising slowly to his paws, the male glanced at his family before trudging ever so slowly towards the water. It wasn't that he was nervous or afraid, but Nahuatl never was one to be much in a rush. Unless he absolutely had to be, he preferred to take his time. Taking his Rites was no exception to the rule, though he did try to look reverent. . . He didn't want to shame his family, or the sea.

Slowly, the lion pushed his paws in to the water. The shells were a bit painful to step upon, but the further he got out in to the ocean, the softer the sands became. That was pleasing. Of course, the further out he went, the larger and stronger the waves became! They pushed at his legs, trying to make him lose his grip, but he fought the currents. He could feel the pull on his legs, and the water continued to rise up and up. Nahuatl hesitated a moment before finally giving in to the waters. He couldn't feel the bottom anymore, and felt his body dragged back by a current. Floating was nice, he could let the sea control him completely, and didn't have to fight. . . .

But. . .

He did have to swim. It was when a wave completely overwhelmed him and he sunk beneath the waters that the lion was forced to find the surface. His great paws quickly pushed out and in front of him, as he had been taught, and he felt the current lift him to the surface. His eyes opened, despite the sting, to see where he might be going. Kicking out and about, he drew himself toward the light of the surface and pushed himself out. He gasped for a breath, but this time actually continued to swim.

The waters weren't necessarily easy to navigate, and the large waves continued to draw him forth and push him back, but he wasn't drowning. . . yet. Now, the next challange was to get back to the surface. Nahuatl took a few moments, better attempting to navigate in the waters and doing his best not to strain his paws in hopes of touching, and like his siblings before, attempted to use the waves to push him back toward shore. It . . . almost worked.

Swimming back towards his family, propelled by a wave, he found the shore to shallow swiftly. He tumbled a bit at the end, especially when his paws felt the pull back of the sea. No no! He was . . .done swimming for now. He was also unaccustomed to being so waterlogged. Tumbling forward, the large lion stumbled as he tried to regain his balance, tripping over his paws, and coming to a flop before his siblings.

The sand felt nice, and he liked that he was once again ruler of his paws. But. . . the anxiety he had felt earlier was nothing compared to the pleasure he felt at having accomplished his rites. Once again, he pushed himself up to his paws, a proud smile on his usual laid back features. This was the beginning of a new chapter in all their lives and it felt . . .good.