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 Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 3:38 pm
 Her paws were wrapped in hide tanned so thin it was practically translucent. It was the safest way for her to handle the tincture she'd concocted. Not that the mixture was poisonous or dangerous, but it did reek to high heavens and there was a chance it would lighten the fur on her paws if allowed prolonged contact. Such was the danger of working with ammonia.
"I appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions, Brynja," Nadezhda said, turning her gaze to the earth-toned priestess. "I know you're busy with your family a great deal of the time lately."
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Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 3:45 pm
 It was true. Brynja's family took up too much of her time, and it was entirely her own fault for letting it happen. She had her own aspirations to achieve, none of which were for the feeble or weak. Lofty goals. Before she died, she would see herself as High Priestess - even if it meant killing Morrigan herself. "It is no trouble, Nadja," Brynja replied easily. It was rare that she was able to take a moment for herself, let alone a space of time with which to interact with other priestesses. "How can I help you?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 4:36 pm
It had never occurred to Nadja to hold Brynja's preoccupation with family matters against her. Nadja's family had its own share of oddities and power struggles. They just tended to be more internal than external.
"Well, I'm grateful just the same. My mother is ailing and I can't help but be nervous about the bone and rune casting portion of my test."
There was more to becoming an ordained priestess than just demonstrating an ability to do foretellings, but Nadja was not concerned about them. She had the doctrine down pat and the ceremonies' words and gestures were just as familiar to her. The spiritual trek was absolutely no concern for her - her family mixed the drugs that she would be taking for that and she knew exactly how it would effect her.
"Would you mind casting a few and allowing me to try interpreting them to see how my interpretations compare to yours?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 5:32 pm
This was something Brynja was quite familiar with. As one of the more active, older priestesses in the pride, many of the younger hopefuls - and even the seasoned lionesses - came to Brynja for assistance. It was a constant source of pride for Brynja.
"Of course, Nadja."
It didn't take long for Brynja to retrieve her small hide-sachel of bones. The priestess began her divination after the bones were strewn about - though she remained silent as to their foretelling.
"Begin."
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Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 6:07 pm
Nadja peered at the bones from one angle and then another. The thing with reading bones was that it was highly subjective and open to interpretation, but nevertheless there were a certain number of givens. Nadja always had a harder time with things that weren't absolute. Exact measurements like the sort required for her concoctions were fine, but estimating and prognosticating...not so much.
She cleared her throat rather than make the sound of hesitancy that she was inclined to make. Saying "um" and "er" did nothing to a priestess's credit. Even when one was unsure, one must appear confident. That was one of the first things Nadja had learned from her mother.
"A great lion and his many ancestors - no! descendents! - will experience a significant change in their fortunes. And important...beings will play roles." She frowned and looked at Brynja. "Beings isn't the best word there. What would be more accurate?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 6:24 pm
Brynja made a pleased sound, mismatched eyes narrowing with approval.
"Very good. A great lion and his descendants will experience a very significant change." She fell silent, staring hard at the bones she'd thrown. It was odd; it had been quite some time since she'd seen such a prophecy.
"It looks as if the Gods themselves will play parts - have played parts - though perhaps in secrecy. Trickery, a master plan at hand."
Brynja would have to tell her uncle about this - despite this being a lesson, the reading held too much weight not to.
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Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 6:41 pm
Nadja blinked. She'd really been hoping to have misread that. When great lions experienced changes in their lives, it was rarely for the better. And as far as large families went, it was never well when they experienced overturns in their fortunes. History was very firm on that point.
"Ugh. I missed that completely about the gods being secretly involved. ********. I'm never going to pass this damn test," Nadja grumbled, attempting to hide her surprise at what the reading showed.
She sighed and carefully peeled off the hide she'd been wearing over her paws. She'd forgotten all about them, so quick had Brynja been to agree and throw the bones. The hides were thrown into a corner to be cleansed later. It was a thrall's job that she would undertake herself because she always had done.
"Do you mind having another go at it with a specific question asked?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 9:26 pm
Brynja was silent for a long time as she stared down at the bones, lifting her mismatched eyes up to meet Nadja's.
"You will do fine. Do not fret over small things - it is no surprise that the gods have their paws in any large change that a lion might go through. Some things are fine to assume - it is only about knowing what is safe and what is not."
Brynja hummed softly before dipping her head - it took her but a moment to gather the bones, and soon enough they were scattered once more.
"What did I have for lunch?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 19, 2012 10:00 pm
Brynja's silence unnerved Nadja a little, but she made a conscious decision not to let it bother her. She was going to have to work with this lioness in the near future and so she mustn't be intimidated by her just because everyone seemed to think that she would end up succeeding Morrigan as head priestess when the time came, though no one knew when that time would be.
"I try not to worry. After all, I don't cause the events. I'm just reading them, right?" And that was the truth of it. Priestesses could influence events, try to achieve certain outcomes through appeals to the gods and other methods, but in theory they were no more policy makers than lawspeakers. They just interpreted the gods' law in much the same way lawspeakers interpreted the warlord's law.
Nadja snickered at Brynja's question. A silly thing. Perhaps she, too, had been a bit unsettled by the nature of their first foretelling, and wished to stay on safer topics. Nadja didn't blame her, and it took her a few moments to collect herself enough to look at the bones properly.
"One of our herded wildebeests," she decided, mostly guessing. The array seemed to indicate something captive and in this season the pride didn't have that many kept herdbeasts except for wildebeests.
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Posted: Mon Aug 20, 2012 10:32 am
Brynja gave a small chuckle, eyes bright as she nodded. "Very good. Now -- be honest, Nadja -- did you divine this answer entirely from the bones, or was there some assumptions involved?"
She already knew the answer.
Of course there were assumptions involved. For such small, mindless readings whose outcomes did not really matter, well. Reading the environment helped, more often than not. A skilled glance around the den could give more precise answers that the bones could not. After all, the bones were rather open to interpretation.
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Posted: Mon Aug 20, 2012 10:45 am
"I made a few educated guesses," Nadja admitted, and then added defensively, "But there're no rules against that."
There was a fine line between divination and charlatanry, and because divination was Nadja's weak point she was always especially careful not to cross it. She would rather admit that she couldn't get a concrete reading than make something up.
"I'm worrying too much, aren't I?" she asked.
She was also just a little worried about what would happen when her mother finally died. It was true that the younger lioness had replaced the older in a homicidal manner for generations, but she knew it was not normal for the pride and there was always the chance that this time the other priestesses would charge her with murder rather than test her to become one of them. It wasn't worth going into that with Brynja though.
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Posted: Mon Aug 20, 2012 6:27 pm
Brynja laughed, the sound rich and robust.
"You are. I am of the belief that each Priestess has her own methods - and none of us are the same. You should practice what you truly enjoy, Nadja. You do not need to excel at all of the things - but find enjoyment in what you do excel at. I, for one, have never been adept at poison crafting, whereas you and your family have found a niche. It is nothing to be ashamed of."
Brynja shrugged.
"I prefer chanting, or even trances. Saraneth has her bells," Brynja snorted, "though I do not believe that she has any true skill. Fear will work wonders when convincing those who want to believe."
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Posted: Mon Aug 20, 2012 6:52 pm
Nadja's smile went along with Brynja's laughter. Her own laughter had never sounded like that. She always sounded sort of like she was cackling or snickering when she laughed. She tried not to do it in company that outranked her, lest they get the wrong impression of her.
"Well, someone has to do it," Nadja said, dismissing her own not inconsiderable skills with a shrug. "But we are more useful for mixtures other than poison. Poison being a low tool and all that."
There was a secret her mother wouldn't tell her about the use of poison and how it had changed the pride around the time Nadja was born. She wanted to get it out of her mother before she died, and so she was actually drawing her mother's death out. She wanted to know.
"Mm. Yes. Saraneth's bells." Nadja had never thought too highly of those. "If anything, I'd think it's the bells that are talented, rather than Saraneth. But that's just my opinion."
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Posted: Mon Aug 20, 2012 7:08 pm
Brynja gave another loud laugh. "Bells. And to think that a lioness actually tutored beneath her. It was likely Ulrika's father looking for a quick indiscretion." She sniffed, sounding entirely too offended by the prospect. Brynja had never found herself in such a position - and at times she liked to believe it was what made her such a successful priestess. There would be a time and a place for all of that - and Brynja was in no rush. "Are you feeling more relaxed now? About your test?" 
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Posted: Mon Aug 20, 2012 7:20 pm
"And she's still serving her apprenticeship, is she not?" Nadja asked. "How long can it possibly take to learn which of seven bells to ring in any given moment?"
There was more to it than that, of course, and well Nadja knew it. She was fortunate to grow up steeped in priestess lore as she had, for the ease it lent her own training. Nevertheless, Nadja couldn't help thinking that Ulrika might just be a little slow. She probably couldn't help it, given who her father was.
"Yes, thank you. I didn't mean to waste your time with idle gossip. I just get so tired of only hearing my mother's opinions stated and re-stated."
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