28/01/2006
Rainbow Lake
Early evening finds Veronica on all fours, but not in any of her fuzzy forms. She's at her 'writing spot', carving out glyphs in the dirt with a sturdy, well used stick. Her clothing is mussed and messy as always, but her hair is neatly braided. She's frowning with determination, intent on her craft.
Pierces Ice trots up from the south, her coat almost fully recovered and regrown. She slows when she spots the cub, sniffing in her direction before approaching. As she nears, she slides upward into homid, stopping several yards off. "Waqaa, Ingtaq. Cangacit?"
"Waqaa, Jacinta-rhya! Practising the glyphs again." Veronica shifts from all fours to her butt, broad grin in place as she looks up at the elder. "I think I'm figuring out how they fit together. Y'know...which parts are words, which ones are just, y'know, there. Today's been so nice." The Galliard tucks the stick into her pocket.
Jacinta moves closer to peer at the scratchings. "Ii? Show me what you see."
Currently the moon is in the waning New Moon phase (4% full).
Veronica has apparently been working out the first couple of laws, as they are 'dissected' on the earth in front of her. "That one was easiest," she explains, pointing with a finger to the partially-drawn Wyrm glyph. "It even looks like a snake, so it's pretty obviously Horned Serpent. And that means that these ones, that go across it, those mean fight. Maybe they mean 'wherever it dwells and breeds', too. And um...then I looked at this one, and saw sort of the same thing. This one's there twice, so that's got to mean Garou, and then the other one, that's kind of part of them, kind of not, that's 'mate'. And then the big scratch...that's kind of obvious too. That whole one took me awhile to figure out, though."
Jacinta seems pleased with Veronica's work and she smiles. "Ii. Assirtuq." She steps back again from the drawing, and beckons to the girl. "You have been learning very well." She points to her head and then to her chest. "You understand the knowledge you have been given, and you have accepted your spirit. It is time we begin working on your strength as a warrior."
Circle Keeper slowly lumbers down from the higher elevations, the Uktena in no apparent hurry to get anywhere. The wolf looks like he's got a cub in tow, and he keeps his posture fairly dominant as he approaches the small cluster of buildings.
Noisy Ghost, following Circle Keeper, has her tail low, and her body language betrays a certain nervousness.
Veronica's prideful expression falls when someone mentions that 'w' word again. She pushes off of the ground, rising to her feet as slowly as she can manage. "Um...Touch Deer-rhya taught me some moves. I look like a retard when I try them." She's just shaking out her arms to loosen the muscles there when she spies movement off in the distance.
Jacinta grunts non-committally, saying, "Touch Deer is a great Warrior. He has great skill and speed, but perhaps his strength is not in teaching." She follows the cub's gaze and her face lightens with pleasure. Cupping her hands around her mouth she calls out, "Waqaa, Kinguqliq!"
Circle Keeper comes to a stop, lifting his head high as he peers across over to Jacinta. His tail wags behind him, clearing in a good mood as he bounds forward a few metres. Hello Sister-Alpha! He greets with a high, nasally noise. He brought Noisy Ghost for her noisy cub so they can talk at and fight eachother! he declares proudly.
Noisy Ghost quickens her pace, jogging up to meet the others. She pauses to wag her tail at Jacinta, and then seems to gather herself. She makes a beeline for the other cub and attempts an 'I'm bigger than you' strut at Veronica, tail and head high.
Veronica's cheeks darken when Circle Keeper makes his announcement, and she wraps her arms around her own waist. Her eyes drop away from the Uktena Ahroun to give the other cub gets a critical once-over, and her eyebrow rises when she gets...strutted at. She plants her feet and gives a shot at looking imposing, jutting her chin a bit.
Jacinta watches Beatrice's approach with a grin which turns somewhat amused as the Uktena cub moves toward her own. "Ii. Quyana, Circle Keeper. It is good for her to meet another of her age and learning."
Circle Keeper trots along towards Jacinta, tail lowering as he grows close to the Wendigo Elder. He stops along side her, rubbing his head against her knees before sniffing at her feet curiously.
Noisy Ghost's hackles puff out; she shows the other cub her teeth and utters a little growl. I'm bigger, better, beat you up. Dare you say otherwise.
Jacinta crouches, scruffling her packmate's ears just briefly before turning her attention back to the cubs. She stays out of the interplay, for now, letting them find their own way.
Veronica's jaw clenches as she tries to figure out how to handle this. Her usual smear tactics are right out, so the Galliard improvises. "I can take you," she says, forcing the bravado. "Anytime, Tiny." Remembering her confrontation with Circles, she takes a firm step towards the other cub.
Cubs? Huh? What? The younger Ahroun seems more attentive to Jacinta than to either of the two youngsters, chewing on her shoe briefly when he finishes investigating where she's been. His ears splay out to the side when she scruffs his head, butting the crown of his head into her side lightly.
One of Noisy Ghost's ears twitch back; she looks uncertain for a second before bluffing forward and moving to knock herself against Veronica. Who's tiny? You're /skinny/. I'm /bigger/.
"No blood," Jacinta calls to the two, and then looks to Circle Keeper. "Have you learned more about the servant of the Horned Serpent that took Walks the Middle Road?"
Veronica's step forward becomes a couple of steps back. "You mean you're fat," she corrects, showing her teeth in a smirk in an attempt to make up for her lost ground.
Noisy Ghost stops dead, coal-black eyes going wide at the comment. Then, with a snarl, she blurs up into Crinos and swings a meaty fist at Veronica's head. (No claws -- maybe she heard Jacinta's admonishment against blood.) ~I AM NOT!~
Circle Keeper only looks back to the cubs when Jacinta talks to them, but his attention is quickly back on the pack alpha. No, he admits unhappily. Head thinks until it hurts this one. No thoughts. he huffs unhappily. Fights-for-Hope-Warders tells him not to kill... And about then, he snaps back over to the cubs at Beatrice's telling, bulking up fast to hispo.
Jacinta, by contrast, doesn't seem concerned about the cubs now. She keeps her eyes on them, but other than moving a step away from Circle Keeper as he shifts, she makes no move to intervene. "We need a way to keep our minds our own."
Veronica's bells get rung. Completely unprepared for the punch, the Wendigo cub gets clobbered several feet back and lands rolling. She ends up in a heap, and there is blood from an obviously broken nose. She emits a pained whine and starts dragging herself to her feet, shifting through the forms to Hispo.
Noisy Ghost flickers a wary sidelong look at Circle Keeper, dividing her attention between the other cub and her teacher. ~She called me fat!~ the Ragabash protests.
Are, Fledgling snarls back, eyes closed as she wobbles on all fours. Her tail flicks into a dominant pose as she manages to stand straight.
Circle Keeper's mammoth head watches the cubs blankly for a few moments, before slowly pivoting it back to Jacinta. It will be seen in the shadow, if it is close enough to try to ride their spirits... the Uktena starts, amid all the clamour from the cubs.
Noisy Ghost turns fully back to the other cub, letting out a snarl, hands clenched into fists. She's not pretending or putting up a front anymore, no more playacting at dominance. She's well and truly angry. ~Am NOT!~
Jacinta nods slowly at Circle Keeper. "I do not know if it has power when we are in - " She breaks off, turning to the cubs to shout, "No Blood!" once again. Now she too bulks upward, joining the Uktena cub in taking Crinos form.
Fledgling opens her eyes when the world seems to be in the right orientation again. Her paws plant firmly and her head lowers, ears pricking when Jacinta gives her order. She thinks better of giving another push, settling for showing teeth and keeping her tail high towards the other cub.
Noisy Ghost glances at Jacinta and then back at Fledgling. Her ears lay back, and her tail drops. ~You suck,~ she tells the other cub before turning away and dropping back down into a sullen Lupus.
Fledgling's ears splay at the words, and she huffs. Her tail flags to mid-height, and she licks her nose. Blinking, she glances at her Crinos and Hispo elders to figure out what to do now.
Circle Keeper's ears shove up as Jacinta shifts to crinos, quickly turning about to face the cubs once more. A few ticks, and he's back to craning his head far up to the Wendigo Fostern again. Ask other bison spirits to make them hard-headed in the mind and unable to be ridden by spirit, he suggests.
Jacinta huffs out a sigh when Noisy Ghost backs down, and she slides back into her birth form before answering her packmate. "Ii. Perhaps when the moon grows a bit more you could speak to them." Her gaze remains on the cubs and after a moment she calls out, "If you wish to be her friend, be her friend. Do what a friend would do."
Noisy Ghost makes a surly, half-formed remark about pretty people as she stalks off, moving toward the shore of the lake.
Fledgling blinks still more, first at Jacinta, then at Noisy Ghost. She puzzles for a moment, her head still throbbing from the other cub's punch, then slips to lupus and picks her way after the Ragabash.
Circle Keeper plods a few steps after Jacinta, shrinking down to lupus as he steps along after the Fostern. He doesn't add anything, his tail tucking down slightly as he looks unhappily at the Wendigo, and then back down at the earth.
Noisy Ghost stops and turns to stare at Fledgling, her manner hostile.
Jacinta settles down where she can continue to watch the cubs and speak with Circle Keeper. "We have no Angalkuq. You have the gift. You must do it, or we must seek outside the pack for help."
Fledgling's ears go up and her tail does as well. Her lips twitch, and she meets the other cub's eyes. This one is not pretty on purpose. Is not only pretty. Other cub is bigger. Not only bigger. This one not want to fight over bigger and smaller. The Galliard is tense, despite her attempt at peacemaking.
Circle Keeper will ask Glacier-Rhya where other bison spirits are, he agrees, still seeming somewhat ill at ease. The Uktena's back to paying the cub's no attention.
Jacinta apparently senses the other Ahroun's uneasiness, looking at him with an intense, curious expression.
Noisy Ghost lays her ears back, looking sullen, her tail hanging limp. Not fight, no. Don't like you.
Fledgling relaxes a bit. This one knows. Head still hurt. Bad start for pure cubs. She sits on her rump.
Noisy Ghost sits down as well. Still sulky, she admits that she is not a pure cub. Not Uktena until she passes her Rite.
Circle Keeper is slow to respond, his unease becoming increasingly acute as he he finds cause to look at everything but Jacinta. He wants to talk at Sister-Alpha, he admits reluctantly, like doing so would be a grand crime.
Jacinta puts a hand on Circle Keeper's ruff. "I am here, Kuukuq."
Fledgling looks suddenly chagrined, and agrees. This one looks like Wendigo, but is cub. What is other cub called? she asks, perking up a bit now that they're off the topic of who's the Queen Bee.
The Ragabash cub looks dubious at the attempt to make them seem similar, but gives her name as Noisy Ghost. Scout.
Circle Keeper cringes, as if steeling for a hit before he's even said whatever it is he's going to say: This one thinks Sister is very very smart but is wrong to ask Bison to let Blackriver join Ridgeline-Pack.
This one is Fledgling Little-Bird, the Wendigo cub replies, as though the other asked her name. Moonsinger. Human born. Her tail waves, and she pokes her nose at Noisy Ghost.
Jacinta grunts, her chin lifting unconsciously. "Why?" she asks Circle Keeper.
Noisy Ghost ducks her head, giving the other a few half-hearted sniffs. She herself smells like sweat and clothes worn for days on end, and dirt. I'm human born too.
Fledgling has a similar smell, with a touch of old blood for flavor. Is Noisy Ghost staying at the Lake now? In Longhouse? Or going to caern with Circle Keeper-rhya when done here?
Noisy Ghost indicates the negative on both and points her muzzle back the way she'd come. Her manner's still sullen, and gets moreso as she answers. Cave, that way. Higher land. Keeper-rhya says this is a place for pure blood, and I don't have pure blood.
Is silverfang. Acts Silver Fang. Acts... sick in head. Tells Circle Keeper her tribe is alpha tribe. Uktena have no alpha tribe. Thinks she is big and good enough to be Guardian before she even gives introduction at a moot. Fights with others who do not think she is dominant for being Silver Fang. Does stupid things at Winter Season-rite that makes it so Helios doesn't think he should go back into sky. Does other bad things too. The Uktena's litany takes a while, and throughout he slowly inches away, obviously fearing physical reprisal. Ridgeline-pack keeps ways. Silver Fangs destroy ways.
Fledgling whines. Did not know that was law of this place. Is nice place, pretty lake. Is cave good?
Jacinta is watching Circle Keeper, and misses Beatrice's comments entirely. When the other Ahroun is done, she heaves a great sigh and crosses her arms over her chest. The two gestures are antithetical, and the expressions warring across her face show the same mixture of emotion. Finally, her lip curls in a snarl and she nods. "I had hoped. I had hoped meeting Glacier would cause her to change. Learn." She lets the words trail off.
Noisy Ghost fidgets, then awkwardly scratches at her side with a hind paw. It's away from stupid-cubs and Wyrmcomers. Away from scary Shadow Lord high-rank wolf. It's cold, but not bad when I am a wolf.
Circle Keeper seems too uneasy to come up with any response, ducking his head and rolling it back to show throat when the Fostern curls her lips in a snarl.
Fledgling snorts. Culls-Apes-rhya. Was in caern with Cries-No-More-rhya, and met Culls-Apes while she was hurt. This one... The Galliard's ears splay, and she looks away from Noisy Ghost. This one lost her food when Culls-Apes asked Cries-No-More about thunder wolves eating humans. Scary Wyrmcomer.
Noisy Ghost peels her lips back in a disgusted expression. Yuck! Really? I'm not surprised! Shadow Lords are the /worst/ Wyrmcomers. Shadow Lords and Silver Fangs and Get of Fenris and Fianna!
Jacinta lets the snarl change into a frown, less anger though no less frustration in the expression. "We will find another, then."
Yes! Thunder wolves hid lawbreaker man eater! Cries-No-More-rhya said so! And are disrespectful of elders. You've met other Wyrmcomers? Fledgling's ears prick. And other cubs! Are all stupid as stories say?
Circle Keeper's head slowly rolls around. Fights-for-Hope-Warder is gathering pack. If he accepts her as honourable enough to be guardian, Blackriver could join the wyrmcomer guardian pack with Fights-for-Hope-Warder. So she can keep wyrmcomer ways and not do bad thing to good ways.
Noisy Ghost affirms most emphatically that Wyrmcomers /are/ stupid, mostly. /Some/ are good, like Ears-rhya of the Bone Gnawers, and Guards-the-Flame and Walks-the-Middle-Road of the Children of Gaia. But if you meet a cub called Works-from-the-Ground-Up, be careful! He's very stupid and attacks for no reason, /and/ he breaks rules.
Jacinta lets out a soft harumphing sound, as though she's not entirley satisfied with that result, but she doesn't say so. Instead she says, "I still feel we are weaker without the middle moons. We need their balance."
Fledgling commits these names to memory, scratching at her ears with her forepaws. Attacks for no reason? What tribe teaches Works-from-the-Ground-Up, the Get of Fenris? The Thunder wolves?
Glacier is patient, Circle Keeper answers, before give more broad, blanket agreement with her statement. The Uktena turns his head back over towards the cubs, the comment about Andrew seeming to catch him off guard. The younger Ahroun peers on over at the two by the lake.
Jacinta hadn't been paying any attention to the cubs, needing more focus on the wolf's posture to catch his thoughts, but when he looks over at them, she follows his gaze.
Noisy Ghost huffs. He's a Child of Gaia, but he's not a very good one.
Noisy Ghost is oblivious to the attention of the adults.
Likewise oblivious, Fledgling gives an exaggerated growl that turns into a wuff. This one would be better at Child of Gaia than stupid angry cub. Not lawbreaker, not attack for no reason, she brags.
Jacinta coughs loudly at her cub's pronouncement. "Concentrate on being a better Wendigo, perhaps."
Circle Keeper licks his chops still not quite back to being entirely at ease. Jacinta's retort causes him some amusement, tail slowly waving in behind him low.
Noisy Ghost blinks over at Jacinta and then lolls her tongue out in amusement and turns back to the other cub. Yes, be a good Wendigo. Like I try to be a good Uktena.
Fledgling huffs at her elder's joke, pretending to be hurt even as her tail wags. Is going to be a better Wendigo. Big. Strong. Loud. Lots of wind. She gives a low howl to prove her point.
Jacinta glances at Circle Keeper and then back to the cubs. "Have you begun teaching yours the ways of the warrior?"
Circle Keeper's head slowly pivots on back to Jacinta, giving her a blanket 'no.' Cub was too far to teach much. Is now closer, so can teach more.
Noisy Ghost stretches up abruptly into her birth form. She's just as chubby as her wolf shape (though not quite as chubby as she was when she was cubnapped). "Y'mean fightin', yeah?" She scrubs fingers through her dark blonde curls; her North Carolina drawl is still thick.
Fledgling turns her head this way and that, then shifts to homid as well. May as well fit in, right? She can't hide her slightly nervous expression as the conversation turns that way again.
From afar, Beatrice is so very, very white. :>
Long distance to Beatrice: Veronica points, screams. :D Don't worry, it'll be in the next pose.
From afar, to the room, Beatrice grins.
"Ii," Jacinta says to Beatrice, then looks again to the Uktena Ahroun. "I was about to begin instruction of Ingtaq Cetaaq when you arrived."
Circle Keeper looks from Jacinta, to his cub, and then to Jacinta again. His head tilts slightly to one side, wondering if Sister-Alpha wants him to take his cub away?
Beatrice hitches up her jeans and looks at Jacinta, teeth gnawing at her lower lip.
Veronica glances at Beatrice, almost back to Jacinta, then stares at the Uktena cub. Her mouth opens slightly, then clicks shut. No comment for the time being, but she's fairly obvious in her shock. She forces herself to turn her attention back to her elder, fidgeting with the edge of her shirt.
"Qang'a!" Jacinta says quickly. "If you do not object, perhaps they could learn together?"
Beatrice gives Veronica a sharp look, eyes narrowing, her new-found good mood dropping away like a rock down a hole.
Circle Keeper's head perks, ears tipping forward as he opens his jaws. Yes, yes! And cubs can fight each other to be better fighting. he agrees enthusiastically. Would be good to learn glory from Younger Brother.
Veronica's expression says, very clearly, I am about to get my ass _kicked_. The glance she shoots at Beatrice doesn't help matters much.
Jacinta grins. "Ii. And fighting with air does not train the body." She rises slowly and beckons the cubs to her.
Beatrice continues to squint suspiciously at Veronica for a few moments before realizing that she's being called over. She gives the other a final nose-wrinkle before heading over toward Jacinta.
Veronica gets up as slowly as she can manage, trying to delay the inevitable. Her approach is equally reluctant, her gaze hopping from Jacinta to Beatrice and back. She tries, a little belatedly, to cover her concern.
Circle Keeper moves around behind the Wendigo to her other side, watching Beatrice as she comes on over. The other cub gets only a few moments of attention here and there, his focus clearly on the Uktena-wishing-cub.
Jacinta juts her chin outward and looks up at each of the younger girls. She shares a faint smile and says, "Today you will begin. When your early training is complete, you will be capable of learning to fight. This is what I say. What you learn today is not to fight, it is to learn to fight. Ii?"
Beatrice blinks owlishly at Jacinta and then grins. "Wax-on, wax-off?"
Veronica snorts, then starts giggling, all of the tension she's been building up in her nervousness escaping.
Jacinta must have seen the movie because she grins at Beatrice.
Circle Keeper, meanwhile, looks lost. He looks between the three with a sort of dull look, and you can almost imagine the joke making a pleasant swishing sound as it goes by him.
Beatrice's grin widens. She stuffs her hands into her pockets and rocks back on her heels a bit.
Veronica claps her hands over her mouth, eyes still gleaming with laughter as she tries to stop.
Jacinta nods, "Ii. Like that. But more. You must not only master the art of making war, you must master it in five separate bodies. How to choose which form to use, and how to use it to best effect." She circles around and comes to stand between the cubs, gesturing for them to face one another. "Today, a simple task. Place your palms together."
Beatrice raises her eyebrows, but obeys readily enough. All the movies where people learn martial arts include strange instructions from the teacher, and at least this doesn't involve random household chores.
Veronica does the same. The lack of randomly flailing at imaginary targets while looking like a moron is a definite plus here. She watches Beatrice, not Jacinta, waiting for the next instruction.
Circle Keeper, not immediately involved in the teaching, starts to pace around to the other side of the group. His head stays on the three as he circles, ears perked yet again..
"Ii," says Jacinta. "Assirtuq. Now. Bring your hands a centimeter apart. Close your eyes and feel the heat of the other. Feel her presence." She steps back, giving room and says, "Now, without opening eyes, I want you to feel when the other shifts, and match her form. When I tap your shoulder, shift to glabro. When I tap your elbow, shift to Crinos. When I tap your wrist, shift to homid. I will change who I tap, and where, and when. Match your partner's form.
Beatrice's brow furrows. She looks a trifle uncertain at this, but nods, moving her hands a little away from the other cub's and closing her eyes.
Veronica obediently closes her eyes, trusting that the elder knows exactly what she's doing. She purses her lips, trying to concentrate on the other's form already.
Jacinta walks around and around, suddenly tapping Veronica on the elbow.
Circle Keeper, meanwhile, watches from the side rather mute.
Veronica immediately changes forms, moving her foot to keep her balance. Her ears cup towards the other cub, trying to sense if Beatrice has followed her lead.
Beatrice frowns, a line furrowed deep between her eyebrows. She shifts up rather belatedly after Veronica, moving past Glabro and into Crinos.
Jacinta's next tap comes to Beatrice's shoulder. When both girls are in Glabro, she taps Beatrice again, on the elbow. Finally, she taps Veronica again, on the wrist.
Fledgling follows the instructions as best she can, a little slow at noticing when Beatrice changes. She doesn't cheat, no matter how tempting it may be.
Beatrice, likewise, keeps her eyes tightly shut in concentration. She's quicker to notice changes when in Crinos, and more hesitant in homid and Glabro.
The 'game' goes on for a while, but eventually both are back in homid and Jacinta calls out, "Assirtuq," signaling the end. "Awareness is the first key to success in war. I have one thing more to teach, tonight, if you believe your minds still open."
"I'm okay," the Galliard says, tugging at her braid and looking over Beatrice. "If you think you can keep up," she adds, her tone lightly teasing this time.
Circle Keeper watches for a short while, before he begins to wander off. He heads south and west, slowly making his way back to back to the bawn without so much as a goodbye.
Beatrice gives Veronica a bit of a squint; she still doesn't quite trust this pretty girl. "I can if you can," she replies, with a thin smirk.
The Wendigo glances over as Circle Keeper moves to leave. "Piuraa, Kuukuq!" Jacinta calls after him, then looks back to the girls. "Assirtuq. Now. Most fighting you do against The Horned Serpent will be in Crinos or Hispo, as those are the forms of war. They are stronger and faster than homid, more hardy than wolf. And to fight in those forms is different than to fight in homid, but some of the concepts are the same."
Veronica flashes a half-grin at Beatrice before returning her whole attention to the Ahroun. Jacinta's statement gets a short nod.
Circle Keeper looks over as Jacinta calls to him, tail wagging briefly as he makes a high-pitched reply of similarly good nature. He the resumes trotting away.
Beatrice is distracted by Keeper's leaving and gives him a wave, and then turns back to the lesson, her oval face intent and serious.
Jacinta grunts and begins. "In homid, your feet are flat, heel and toe both hold to the ground. In Crinos you stand on your toes, alone. In fighting, you must have the strength of the earth under you, but remember the Crinos, you are faster when your heel is not stuck down. Today I will show you the first form. You will master it in Homid and in Crinos. When next we meet, you will tell me how it is different for the two shapes we wear. Ii?"
The Uktena cub gets another glance, then Veronica nods again. "Okay."
Beatrice nods as well, quickly and eagerly.
Jacinta teaches the form, almost Tai Chi slow. It is much like a martial arts kata, and yet somehow different, particularly when run through in Crinos. Very Wendigo in feel, it involves bowing to each of the four directions, and, as Jacinta explains, calls forth the strength of the wind from each. It is also short, and relatively simple.
Veronica mimics the movements with intent focus, trying to get everything perfect on the first try. Naturally, it doesn't quite work that way, but it doesn't look entirely horrible either.
Beatrice isn't particularly graceful, though she concentrates hard to get the forms right, with modest results at best. And she gets frustrated when she gets it wrong, grimacing in self-anger.
Jacinta shows nearly unending patience. Maybe it's the small moon, maybe it's her enjoyment of teaching, but the cubs' various mistakes and frustrations are not met with any sort of frustration on her part. Again and again she goes through the form, patiently correcting minor errors. At times, she even ignores minor problems, simply complimenting the cubs on their efforts.
Veronica catches the positive wave, 'cheerleading' Beatrice when she does something right, grinning broadly when she garners a compliment. She's easily distracted, and when she loses track of what she's doing, she has to start all over again.
Beatrice actually seems to have a good sense of concentration, and she's quick to absorb the compliments and even, by the end, warms up to Veronica a little.
Jacinta finally gives a solid nod to both cubs. "Assirtuq. You have begun. You will train your bodies to understand war. It will take much practice, much patience, but you will learn. When no teacher is available, practice what you have learned from me with each other. Let one perform the form, the other critique. Then switch. Practice the awareness excercize. See how far apart you can get and still feel the other. Ii?"
"Yes, Jacinta-rhya," Veronica says with another sharp nod. "This is a lot easier than all of that..." she whips her arms around in a poor imitation of the techniques Touch Deer tried to teach her.
"Ii," Jacinta says, though her tone and expression are serious. "Easier, because you are not ready for what he was teaching. You will be, one day. And you must put as much effort into this part of your learning as what seems a more difficult task. Understand?"
Beatrice smirks at little at Veronica's flailing and then nods to Jacinta. "Walk b'fore y'can run," she drawls.
Veronica just nods at the Uktena's response. "It just makes sense."
Jacinta grins and then moves off from the cubs. "Assirtuq. Ingtaq, get our guest some food. Then go find somewhere for the two of you to rest until she must return to her home for the night." The Ahroun climbs the steps to the maqii, hesitating at the top before entering.
"G'night, Jacinta-rhya," Beatrice pipes up. "Thanks!"
Veronica beckons Beatrice towards the Longhouse. "We've got dried fish and all sorts of stuff. What do you like? It's all real traditional food. We can crash by the lamp for a bit. G'night elder!"
Beatrice tugs her coat around her and follows. "Dried fish? Huh. Guess I'll try anythin' once..."
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