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The Tribe Mother

An Arvian lore tale by Isiat Carcer

It takes a tribe to raise a child, or so the saying went.

Making her way through the village, the petite yet curvy Arvian female had no doubt of the wisdom in that phrase. Her feathers and pelt seemed to radiate a matronly warmth, the same colour as a warm mug of cocoa, splotched with patterning of cream and tan. She was short, especially among her Arvian kin, but she had always been that way. The Moonkissed Shamans had warned her that much would likely not change. After all, the spirits could only work with the materials they were given.

When each was ready in their tribe, they underwent the Ritual of Change, a sacred rite of passage and the final step of becoming a true Arvian. This transformed them from whatever species they had been before into the hulking, powerful, wingless bird-like species that were Arvians.

She'd not even crossed five feet before her change, and relative to her starting height, the fact that she had come out of it at seven and change feet had been nothing short of a miracle. She was tall and broad, as all Arvians were, but more in heart, if not quite as much in height. She had the stature and build of an Arvian, along with their keen senses, strength, and speed, but... miniature, so to speak.

Even some of the tallest of the unchanged were taller still, if just barely. If you counted Shadi's ears as well, she made barely eight feet of Arvian short stack even! It was enough for her. The gifts of strength and speed she had been blessed with were enough. The family she had been blessed with by her mate before their transformations were enough. And the adoration and love of the children of the tribe were enou-

"Keen-claws! Spit those out. The green berries are not good for snacking!" She snapped her tail like a whip in front of her, the massive appendage smacking the fistful of berries the young wolf was about to scarf down to the ground. She looked at the chubby whelp disappointedly down her beak. Her eyes narrowed in a disapproving glare.

"Sorry, Miss Shadi. I forgot…" He bashfully apologized, keeping his blue eyes downturned. The whelp was still young and barely came up to her midriff—perhaps a dozen Summers old if that. Once, years ago, she could have kneeled and been smaller than the tall boy. Now, she knelt and still felt like a giant.

"If you are hungry, there is fresh fruit and dried meat in the back of the teaching hall. Asher!" she called. The young, dark kitsune child appeared in a hurry, breaking away from the others he was playing with. His eyes were mismatched, inheriting his mother's heterochromia and his father's dashing looks. There was almost a permanent smirk on his face. One brown and one icy blue eye stared up at her, full of youthful joy and mischief.

Before long, it would be his turn to be called an adult and try to earn the blessings of the Elders to join his parents in becoming a full-fledged Arvian. He'd been so young when they underwent the change that he had scarce few recollections of how his parents had been before.

"Yes, Mom?" The vulpine kit asked cheerily.

The teaching hall had been a pet project of Shadi's since she had joined the Moonkissed tribe at Cereth's Sight. She'd had to strong-arm some help, of course, though. Shadi wasn't a builder! But she could catch, skin and cook a deer better than damn near anyone in the tribe, Arvian or unchanged. When combined with her skill as a baker before her change, her cooking made for easy bartering. A few rabbit pies or a rack of ribs in exchange for a bit of lumber and some spare muscles to move it all. The fact that the elders also saw the apparent benefits of such a building and put their support behind her effort helped as well.

No parent would begrudge her for taking their children into her care for a few hours of the day while, at the same time, giving some of the more senior instructors and Elders among their tribe a moment's reprieve from managing the many unchanged younglings of the tribe. After all, without the children, there would be no new blood to learn their ways and, in turn, undergo the change and become Arvian, as she and her mate both had some years prior.

Hand-woven tapestries, pressed, leather-bound books, hand-painted papers, and maps were scattered around the hall, seemingly organized in what she might have described as some rather specific organization.

Organized chaos would have also fit. Young unchanged were hardly known for their cleanliness nor for their ability to keep things neat and orderly.

"Take Keen-claws and fetch a snack, and then call the others in so we can get back to it. Perhaps identifying forage should be our topic…" She laughed softly, with a sweet trill of musical birdsong, before shooing the children away to the sound of their giggling.

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Their classes tended to roam far across what was widely considered their tribe's territory. Cereth's Sight was a small settlement that had moved at least twice for more favourable lands or as the woods and swamplands sought to restore the balance of nature. This was usually determined between the elders, the spirits, and the signs they had seen, such as the main street beginning to flood in the wet season. Not all signs took the spirits to interpret. Sometimes, it was just damp and cold, and dryer land was called for.

As it stood now, the Moonkissed lands roamed from the Great Parting Sea to the rapidly flowing white waters of "The Divide", a great river that brought meltwater from the frozen north to the south. Many settlements and camps dotted the river's length through both the Suntouched and Moonkissed tribes' lands. It served as an unofficial 'border' between the two Arvian tribes, and like that split, it was broader and rougher in certain parts than others.

However, Shadi's class wouldn't be going nearly that far today. The divide was several days' walk from their Cereth's Sight. The tribe's unchanged fledglings didn't have the kind of endurance that a fully changed and adapted Arvian would have to make such trips without an unruly amount of complaints. Even Twin-Moon by River Fork would have been a full-day trip, and it was only off one of the mighty river's spanning branches.

As it was, even the short distance they went into the woods stretched the limits of the children's patience. By noon, Shadi had no choice but to stop, calling a halt to their wandering as she bid them gather around.

The trees here were old, a mixture of ancient oak and new, light-barked birch, interspaced with brush, ferns and the occasional creek or stream. The lands closer to their village were excellent for growing roots but less so for more delicate crops of stalks and vines. But coming this far out also put them beyond the distance at which the tribe's protectors could quickly respond should situations arise.

Shadi had brought her bow, slung across her shoulders, and her hunting knife with her, just in case, along with a backpack of snacks and other essential supplies for an outing. Not that she expected to need more than the snacks, but the unchanged youngsters were ravenous on even a light-duty day.

"Come over here and sit. This spot has good forage," she noted as the children sat in a loose semicircle before her. Bright eyes and bushy tails looked and wagged up at her, ever excited as fascinated youth were. Plus, Shadi's field trips were always fun!

"Who can name some of the plants you can see nearby?" She asked with an almost musical, sweet trill to her question. At once, hands went up, and answers flooded forth from the overeager younglings.

"Cereth's weed!" One of the children called. Shadi turned her owl-like gaze to them.

"When you are addressed, Titus. But yes, good. And what use does it have?" Shadi beamed, beak splitting in a smile as she nodded at the young wolf cub.

"You can use the leaves like a bandage!"

"Good! The Loresinger will also tell you it makes a good tea, and he would be wrong! Now, spread out, not too far. I want each of you to identify and bring back a useful plant here. 15 minutes, go! Quickly!" She chirped a musical, melodious laugh, smiling as the younglings dashed away, some on their own, others forming into little groups.

She listened, large ears perked outwards, following and ever attentive to her little flock, even as she made a small fire from the sticks and branches nearby.

Before long, the small fire was crackling merrily, sending a thin string of dark smoke into the air.

Much of the fuel was still green, but that was okay. If she could find a few rabbits, Shadi could have the youngsters fetch her some berries from the bushes she could scent nearby and teach them how to make a good sauce for the lean meat. Practical lessons were always the ones easiest to pay attention to. Children worked better with their hands than their heads if the subject matter took more than five minutes to teach.

The children were clever and resourceful, and this was both a blessing and a curse. The youngest among them was a mere six summers old, the eldest almost fully grown, and more here to help her and learn directly from her than the group lessons she so often taught.

"Asher, Rene. Please make sure you two are keeping an eye on the smaller ones!" She called out into the woods, hearing a pair of giggled replies a moment later. They were good children, smart children.

Regrettably, that also meant they were cunning and mischievous children, too. It was an unavoidable trade-off as they grew. Shadi had seen enough children off under her care to know how to at least direct that mischief into positive energy.

"Mama Shadi!"

"Miss Shadi!"

The pair of voices filtered back down the game trail Shadi had brought the children down, but yet did not belong to two of hers, at least not in that sense.

Máni and Behtar jogged down the trail towards her, gold and brown Arvian twins far younger and yet still taller than her.

They were not hers simply by virtue of the fact that they were trueborn Arvians, a rarity and blessing that Cereth's Sight, as a village, had agreed to remain mum on when it came to the other Moonkissed settlements.

By that right, they were Fledglings proper, and it was the duty of the other Arvians and the Elders to instruct them in their ways, not the Tribe mother.

But at heart, the pair were still teenagers and as energetic, excitable, and curious as her own son. Truth be told, Shadi adored the pair, and her nestmate, Isiat, did as well. They had all but unofficially adopted the pair, and in a sense, they were the closest thing to parents that the Twins had.

When they reached her, she wrapped them in her arms, preening and rubbing beaks with the twins in a fond and warm welcome. Little warbles of birdsong fluttered between them. Shadi's smile was broad and gentle.

"Elder Kleng said you were going on an outing and instructed us to catch up with you!" Máni grinned as if at some joke unsaid but known between friends. Her tail gave a mischievous wiggle.

"Were you beating him at his own challenges again?" Shadi asked dubiously, folding her arms across her chest.

"Máni only almost broke one of his fingers while we were practising! I'm pretty sure he was done with us. He was cursing a lot…" Behtar grinned playfully, raising his hackles as he tried not to laugh out loud. Máni slugged him in the shoulder to shut her sibling up, earning a tut of reprimand from Shadi.

"Well, that just won't do, will it. Can you set a snare? There was a clearing with some rabbit warrens not far back down the trail I spied, and-"Shadi paused for just a moment, looking over the twins.

They reminded her so much of Asher, who was full of youthful energy, and even Shadi didn't expect him to work all of the time!

Their faces were bright, curious, eager, and excited to learn and participate in whatever task they were set. But more than just being Fledglings in training, they were still teenagers. Even though they were Arvians, it was hard to see them as anything but children. Children should have fun as well. Shadi's maternal instinct got the better of her as she set her paws on her hips and huffed once through her nares.

"Actually, I'll do it. Why don't you two go and find Asher, find a useful plant or herb that you know, and share what you know of it with the younglings? Help them as well find their own if they need it." She nodded in the direction of childish giggling from the brushes.

Both twins broke into a broad grin, nodding as they all but spun on the spot to start off in that direction.

"Yes, Shadi!"

"Yes, Mama Shadi!"

Shadi laughed softly as she watched them go before she turned and headed for the clearing.

The thin line of smoke coming from her fire would at least let the children keep their bearings easily enough, but between Asher and the twins, she had no doubt that they would be just fine.

Fetching her bow up, Shadi went on the hunt, her beak curled into a gleeful grin.

There were a handful of pastimes Shadi enjoyed. She enjoyed the fantasy novels and stories her nest mate returned for her. She enjoyed naps and baking good food. She adored the children of the tribes Unchanged, as well as the blessing and delight that were her own child and the twins.

But she was a predator at heart, and there would forever be a thrill in the simple joy of the hunt.

Even before her change, she had been an artist with her short bow. Silent and stealthy, she'd been able to sneak up on even some of the most experienced hunters in their tribe. She'd done her best to teach Isiat as well, and his own skill at stealthy movements was entirely thanks to her persistence.

Mostly because she wanted to hunt with him, but without him scaring all of her damn prey away.

"Una." Shadi whispered to nobody, and yet somebody heard her call.

Above her, there was a silent flap of wings beating as her dreampal alighted on the branches of a tree just ahead of her, glowing an ethereal blue, the cobalt colour of Esyon in the dark of night.

Her dreampal had bonded with her almost immediately after her change, a rather unheard-of occurrence. Una had been present at her ritual change, lending her latent power of the spirits to transform the little lioness into the relatively little Arvian she was now.

They had connected at once, and Una had gone from a mere wisp of spirit energy to a full-fledged form of a barn owl in the time it had taken the newly changed Arvian to find her feet.

The shaman saw this as doubly ominous, though whether it was a good one or not remained to be seen. Dreampals that took the form of predator species were not unheard of, though they were typically rare.

Barn owls were renowned hunters, and the symbology with Shadi's own skill ranging the woods was not lost on anyone. It was befitting for a hunter to have a suitable companion. In this, Una had been the best the spirits could provide to bond with the huntress.

Wisdom, patience, and swift and decisive fierceness. These were all traits Shadi and Una embodied, and one would be hard-pressed to find a more well-paired combination of Arvian and Dreampal.

That they both also liked to nap during the day wasn't lost on her nestmate either, much to the Loresinger's amusement.

She jabbed her free paw forward, an unspoken signal between the two, and at once, Una set off, flapping hard to gain altitude and rise into the sky. It wasn't clear if the Dreampals actually flew or traversed where they willed. After all, a floating spirit had no need for wings. Yet, they mimicked the appearance and function of wings as the spirit grew into a distant speck of blue against the canvas of the sky.

Shadi wasn't complaining. She'd done falconry in her younger years, long before her own change. Una was an even better hunter than the birds she had trained herself, and that wasn't even beginning to count the fact that Una could simply disappear at will to hide if she needed to, yet the owl was always watching. One couldn't have asked for better than a literally invisible hunting partner.

Shadi crept ahead as Una began circling far above her. The dreampal's eyes focused downwards as she drifted lazily on the air currents. She'd spotted something, and Shadi crouched low, notching an arrow as she crept forward noiselessly.

A good hunter never rushed. Shadi had plenty of time, and between Asher and the Twins, the children would have more than enough guidance. The thin column of smoke rose above the canopy where she'd left it, and content they would be okay for just a few minutes, she set off into the underbrush.

Her figure didn't let size be her advantage, at least not for stealth. However, she still had it better than almost all of her Arvian kin, thanks to her relative height when compared to all the rest of the tribe's members.

She found the small herd of deer quickly enough, keeping downwind from the animals as they grazed between trees. Her mismatched eyes narrowed as she focused, lifting her bow and drawing the arrow back slowly so as not to alert her prey.

A grin curled on the edges of her beak as the feather fletching ticketed her chin. She held her breath for a moment, feeling the tremendous force of the bowstring just itching to be loosed.

A cry from the woods startled her. The shot went wide, the hunting arrow embedding itself a half foot into a tree past her targets with a deep Thunk of stuck wood. The deer scattered, but Shadi had already spun around and shot off her mark at a sprint. Her size mattered little in this case.

Thanks to the gifts of the change, compared to an unchanged, an Arvian charging was terrifyingly quick. Her claws dug into the loamy earth of the undergrowth like a cheetah sprinting across the savannah,

Clods of dirt were kicked up behind her as she dashed through the woods, sharp ears swivelling as she zeroed in on the source of the distressed crying. She found the cub quickly enough, the young hare holding her foot, which was bent at an awkward and painful angle. Mari and Behtar were both already with her, trying to smooth the crying younglings.

"She tripped in a mole hole trying to gather berries. Behtar filled in as soon as he saw Shadi emerge. Shadi took only a moment to assess the situation. She looked at the twins. By now, the other children had started to gather, forming a loose circle as Shadi crouched low, tenderly inspecting the cubs' injuries.

"It hurts! I want mommy!" She cried.

"Shhh, You will be okay little Greyfoot." Shadi murmured as her dreampal alighted beside her on the grass, the blue barn owl leaning in to inspect the injury. She murmured under her breath as she placed her paws over the break, and magic flowed from her paws. It would take time and proper healing to treat, but for now, she could ease the cub's pain. No child needed to suffer while they waited.

The hare's quiet sobs grew less pained but no less distressed. Each one made Shadi's chest tighten uncomfortably with maternal distress. She managed a sweet smile for the brave younglings.

"The hurt is the worst of it, but you will need a splint and for that to be set. Behtar, Máni. Take her back to the village as quick as you can. Gently. Carry her so she's not walking on that." She instructed the golden and brown arvian fledges, starting a quick headcount before looking to her own son. The many-tailed vulpine's ears perked up under her gaze, expecting instructions.

"Asher, make sure everyone is gathered here. We'll finish out the lesson and-" She paused.

She was two shy of a full pack.

"Have either of you seen Eliza and Tiber?" She asked the twins quickly. Both shook their heads.

"I think they were by the river still searching for plants-" Máni started but was quickly silenced by a wave from Shadi.

"I will fetch them. Take Greyfoot back to the village. Asher, stay here and make sure nobody wanders. There are snacks in my pack by the fire. Share them out." Shadi nodded and dashed off towards the sound of running water while the others sorted themselves.

Her heart rate was notably faster, and adrenaline sharpened her senses. She heard voices ahead, and the sound of the river was close now.

And then she stopped dead, unmoving save for her keen ears that listened intently.

There were voices. They were not, however, the voices of Shadi's charges.

"C'mon, hurry up. And shut those two up! We might be able to fetch a good price for these little morsels of prey yet!" An unfamiliar voice cackled in malicious glee.

Slavers.

Shadi's hackles bristled with a fury that Una instantly seized on. She bid her dreampal stay with the younglings.

She would handle this herself.

She growled and dashed forward, leaping through the underbrush on all fours like a mighty beast, her long feline tail's fur raised as it flicked behind her, keeping her balanced as she crashed through the trees beside the river.

The group of unchanged slavers had not expected the Arvian at all, a mix of surprise and horror on their faces and muzzles as the tranquil forest turned violent. The two unchanged children were being held at sword point, both looking terrified.

Were.

Shadi's savage backhanded blow sent the fox threatening her charges flying with a cut-short cry of pain and surprise as he bounced off the trunk of a tree and fell to the ground, unmoving.

The remaining four rounded on her, one raising a bow, the others with a mix of wooden spears and a crude metal club.

Shadi mantled over the pair of cowering youngsters who at once hid behind her massive frame as she snarled her range in a deep, haunting trill that turned wet and throaty growl. She checked them both for injuries and, finding them shaken but unharmed, she slowly turned to face their attackers.

She rose up before the remaining slavers, utterly dominating the clearing and dwarfing the unchanged slavers who dared to threaten the tribe's children - her children, as tribe mother.

There was but a single outcome of this confrontation.

Her beak twisted in an utterly savage grin as she spoke, flexing her deadly sharp talons. They would not leave the clearing after they threatened her charges.

"You seem to have misjudged your position as the predators in this situation. Allow me to correct that."