Celestial Roots

Chapter 6 - Preparation for the ceremony

The group of children was following Maoïr, who walked with a fast pace. They huddled together because of the darkness. Taghna was still hazy. Maoïr had woken her up while it was still dark and a biting cold was numbing her face. Without urgency but with his characteristic determination, they had sunk into the forest.

- Maoïr, what are we going to do? Where are you taking us? Asgeül asked.

The master had explained that they were going to pick drauïl, half a day's walk from the village. Caïséan, who couldn't help but be excited to hear the name of a new plant, had assaulted him with questions. Patiently, Maoïr had answered:

- You may know that Dorséanan will soon be received among the séalyar? he asked. The drauïl is an important element in the preparation of a beverage used during the ceremony. It was Séabanh herself who asked me to go pick some. And since it only grows on trees that need a lot of water...

- Like the luagh! cut Stær.

- Exactly, but the drauïl's favorite tree is the plona. To the east is the Tui River and that is where we will have the best chance of finding these trees.

- Does that mean we're going to hunt fish? asked Déan, who didn't hide his interest in the action.

- No, we won't go that far. Already, it would take us too long and the vegetation changes long before we see the river. In addition, we would need more hunters for that, because we would be approaching the Abtui territory. Even if we will remain far from their domain, we must remain on our guard....

Very quickly, the excitement of the troupe was palpable. Everyone wondered if everything would go well and imagined going on an excursion into enemy territory. Stær and Caïséan exchanged what they knew about the properties of drauïl but they quickly had to face the facts: apart from growing while feeding on other trees, they did not know what it could be used for.

Taghna was not interested in plant stories, contrary to the idea of danger. Maybe they'd finally meet some archféar and even have to fight. She told Færn how much she was looking forward to learning how to use the spear. She embarked on a long monologue filled with fighting and acts of bravery. Færn, who was listening with a distracted ear, suddenly asked his friend:

- What do you think the drauïl is for?

- How should I know? she replied, offended by her friend's lack of interest in her martial adventures.

- I still find it incredible that each plant can help us survive.

- Færn, it is the hunting that helps us survive. It is by eating meat that we managed to hold on throughout the Hir, she replied as if it were a matter of course.

- Maybe for us, but not for adults. They barely eat anything, except for a few roots.

- You forget the feast of the last time, she pointed out to him.

A few days earlier, Mariach and Vorn had brought back a beautiful deer, the first catch of the season. It was still young, which promised a tender and tasty meat, but its size was smaller than expected. The children had enjoyed the kidneys and raw liver, even though the latter had been sliced and they had only been able to eat a small part of it. The adults had taken part in the feast, their first real meal in a long time, but they were satisfied simply with bowls of curdled blood. They then had hastened to cut the beast up and smoke it in order to store it in the mataïg and start replenishing supplies for the next Hir. After a few hours of precise work, only the hooves and young horns remained.