poemtry and prose

Serena beamed at Kaylee with a wide smile that showed only pride and elation. She reached out her hand and touched Kaylee's cheek. "Oh little one. You have always done me proud. Even after you left, to follow your own heart in the city, I was proud of you. You may feel as if you abandoned me or the great spider or the totems that bind all Ser'lapham together but you have not. They have always been with you, even now they have are here, watching and guiding us all."

Kaylee smiled at the optimism her gran had for her, "I understand but do not understand. But I am ever so amazed at how much faith you have in me. And so yeah, here is hoping that I do not screw things up this time and are able to figure out all this totem spirit stuff a lot sooner than later. So, how do we start? What do I need to do?"

"First, help me up and get me out of this bed, little one," her gran said as she tugged at the heavy blankets and furs in a lame attempt to push them all down and off her. "I will attempt to guide you the best my strength and ability can. We will need to go outside and take a small walk. But do not worry, I can handle this. It is very important business, after all. We will also need Daniel to come and bring his drum."

Kaylee helped her gran extract herself out of the bed and into some walking clothing. Her gran put on a traditional winter robe fir made of a grey wolf's pelt and matching pants. Buttons and beads of various sizes and shapes were sewen into the fabric. Swirly designs and rows of lines mingled along with strangely drawn animals and creatures. Fringe hung down on the leather pants and the arm sleeves of the outfit. The moccasins were also made of leather, cow leather and slipped over the old woman's feet very quickly and easily. They smelt not of dank and musky use but of sage and ancient dirt, having seen many moons of dancing and ritual.

Her gran smiled at her when they were done fixing a pair of maiden's braids a top her head. "Ah yes, now I feel much better. More alive and more like my self than I have in the months that the others confined me to this bed. This will do me good to get out and wander around a bit. Thank you little one."

Kaylee smiled. "Sure thing gran. Anything for you."

"And now," her gran said, turning and spinning on the bear rug on the floor, "we need to get you ready for the Hollow. You need to dress yourself in robes and wear your hair in a single pleated braid. We also need to grab some herbs for paint and then... "

Serena spun around as if she was having issues recalling what she was looking for or needed.

"Now where did I put it," she muttered under her breath. "Oh yes, over here." She started moving towards one of the large dresser units in the bedroom that held all sorts of weird objects on it. A badger's skull sat in between two handmade beeswax candles. Scraps of leather and feathers surrounded it on both sides as well. Her eyes darted back and forth as she struggled to locate a single item. Finally, after a minute's worth of searching, she gently and lovingly lifted the badger skull. Sitting inside the cavern was a single, small black leather pouch. A single leather cord wrapped into and around the top, keeping whatever contents inside, safe from falling out. She lifted the pouch. It was light and moved easily.
She spun around and looked at Kaylee and smiled a worried look.

"The robes you will need, are inside those drawers behind you my dear. Go ahead and put them on and your shoes. Do not worry, the leathers will keep you warm outside."

Kaylee obeyed her Gran doing everything the shaman asked her to do. First, she looked through the drawers and pulled out a long flowing robe made of the softed leathers she had ever felt. They felt almost like silk beneath her finger tips and slipped on over her head. Kaylee was surprised at how nice the leather felt against her skin. The dress was neither too tight nor too loose. It allowed her to breath and move as if she were back in her t-shirt, jeans and jacket. While her Gran had her back turned towards her, she carefully wove her hair into a long single plaided black braid as her mother taught her to do. It had been a long time since she wove her hair into the trademark pleat that connected her hair with the native bloods that coarsed through her bodies. At home, she would only let it down or quickly bunch it into a pony tail, as the braid made her more self conscious and very aware of just how different she felt from the others in the city.

She watched her gran look through a cabinent of tinctures and bottles of dark and liquidy items. Bottles of every size and shape lined the shelves in her gran's medicine cabinent. Her gran's head moved back and forth until it located the right bottle. She reached out with both hands and pulled a small brown bottle full of some liquid from the second shelf. This she put in her pocket. Then her gran took out a mortal and pestle. She started selecting various herbs and dried berries scattered around the next table top in her bedroom. She carefully set each small root and berry into the pestle and then, when she felt she had the right concocction, she mixed them all up into a paste, adding water a few drops at a time from her finger tips.

She held the up and over her head and spoke a very ancient incantation, "Ye honay, quintalish oota, ya eet ayo." She then removed the small bottle from her pocket and poured a few drops of it into the mixture and let it set.

Then she moved over to Kaylee and dipped her hand into the paste. She rolled it over her finger tips until they were covered with the strange mix and colored. Her gran then paused and looked at Kaylee's round indian face. Then she set her hand, all five fingers spread out, along the young woman's face. The ink dyed and left a mark over her right eye as if the fingers were a shadow slowly crawling and spreading over the bridge of her noise, creeping to her left eye. Kaylee blinked and scrinched her nose up at the pungant scent the crushed herbs made.

"Do not touch your face," her gran warned her," you will need that on you this night. You will know when to wash it off."

Kaylee nodded once more and fought the growing urge to scratch and peel the stuff off her face. She remained silent, as she had done so many years ago as a child, waiting for her Gran's next instructions. Finally, as an added touch, she poured another small dose of the liquid from the amber brown jar and smeared a half inch circle in between the third eye on Kaylee's forehead.

"Daniel," Serena called out, "bring your drums. We have work to do."

Daniel appeared briefly at the door, with a look of surprise on his face. This look quickly morphed into one of awe, confusion and resentment as he realized what had happened. He immediately knew that she had accepted the offer and that tonight would be piercing the veil and entering Vellum Hollow herself, with the help of the aging shaman. He was disappointed but dare did not say anything to miasoa for fear that the old woman would do something drastic.

Instead, he nodded to her and went to his room to prepare himself and dress his drum for the small private rite that was going to take place soon.

Serena sat Kaylee down by the fire, sitting on her forlegs, "Little one, there is so much you do not know and so much that you already do know. Tonight, you will be led into the birthplace of creation, Vellum Hollow. You will travel to a place that is far and yet very near to our lands alone. You will walk the ground and live and breath as the spirits do. And when they feel you are ready, they will contact you. However you cannot just sit around and wait for that to happen."

She looked down at the little black pouch now lovingly held in her hands. She turned it around and over and over again a few times before speaking again, "This has been sitting under the skull of badger for a very long time. I made this a few months before you left here. A few months before the night that the elders and I were to perform the ritual where your spirit totem wa going to pick your path and show itself to you. I recall looking forward so much to that day, and it has taken all this time for it to appear. That day is today."

She grabbed Kaylee's hand so it was cupped. She then placed the small bundle into the open and waiting receptive palm and closed Kaylee's fingers around it. "That bundle is your medicine pouch. Everyone has one."

"It feels light. What does that mean?" Kaylee responded unfolding her fingers so she could examine the bag a bit more.

Serena laughed, "It means nothing little one. It means that you will have to fill it up with small totems and gifts that you find on your journey into Vellum Hollow. Like I said, everyone's bundle is personal and is composed with items that give them power and strength. Yours is empty, well almost empty because you will need to fill it while you are in the veil."

Kaylee opened the pouch and poured out the contents. Four tiny white stones tumbled into her hand. Sigils of weird shapes had been carefully carved into the smoothest face of the rock. What do these mean?" she asked.

Serena pointed to each one as she named them, "They are divination stones of our ancients. Earth, air, fire, water. I put them in your bundle for them to help guide you on your journey. You will use them each time you seek out an item to place in your bundle and to guide you into picking the right spirit. "

"You mean, I will be seeing more than one?"

"Yes and some may try and trick you. The goal is not for you to pick the first one you lay eyes on but the one that speaks to your soul. Question them, make sure that the one you choose is the one you want guuding you throughout the rest of your days in this existence. If you do not pick the right one, they may constantly trick you and teach you self doubt and undermine your ability to help the tribe."

"Oh, um... okay," Kaylee said, attempting to pay close attention to all she was saying. Her nerves jumped and it felt as if her heart entered the very center of her throat.

"Do not be afraid little one, I am sure that many of the spirits you meet will be forgiving and help you through the process. Oh and here, drink this. It is a special brew miaosa and I created to help you better connect to the spirits in Vellum Hollow."

Daniel pulled a similar amber jar from around his neck. Kaylee blinked at him and hesitated before taking the bottle from his hands. He nodded that it was safe and she took a small taste. The liquid tasted stale, as if it were made from dirt. She frowned and made a very sour face as she choked down the thick elixir. The liquid stung a bit as it slid down her throat.

They sat there, in front of the fire for a good half hour. Serena instructed Kaylee further as to what to expect and do while spending time in Vellum Hollow. She asured the young woman that food and water would be plentiful and that she had nothing to fear except her own fears and self doubts. Finally, after all was said and done, Serena sat up and brushed the wrinkles from her dress. "Are you ready?" she asked Kaylee.

Kaylee stood and forced a smile, "Yes. We better do this now before I lose my nerve and run out of here screaming."

"You will do fine," came Daniel's voice from the doorway. "You are miaosa's granchild. The power and the knowledge, even though you did not complete it, is all within you. You will recall and remember. Miaosa, are you ready?"

"Aye," Serena said, and closed her eyes while allowing her head to move towards the ceiling. She began chanting once more, again in the tongue of their ancestors. She smiled and winked at Kaylee and made her way slowly from the bear rug to the doorway where Daniel helped her.

"Do not speak unless miaosa asks you to," Daniel warned Kaylee as she stepped through the doorway. "You will also need to help her walk the path as I will be drumming. Do not be afraid and do exactly whatever she told you to do."

Kaylee nodded and allowed her Gran to hook her arm around her waist. They made their way outside. Once outside Daniel started beating his drum. A low bassy beat vibrated deep into her core as the small procession walked down the path, away from the reservation center and deep into the forests behind her gran's cottage.

Large trees surrounded them and Kaylee felt the heat only from her gran, Daniel and herself. Small puffs of mist rose and fell with each breat they took. It was dark out and the light of the full moon appeared brightly overhead. Kaylee could hear the soft crunching noises as the moccasins and shoes crunched lightly against the gravel beneath their feet. She did her best to hold her gran up and they only stumbled once or twice on the path.

They continued to walk deeper into the forest, with the trees growing denser and denser. Daniel's drum kept beating as if it were the slow and steady throb of the heartbeat coming from the forest floor and trees and flowers contained within it. The sounds, and the chanting that came lowly from out of her gran's mouth helped to deter the cold that Kaylee knew was biting at her fingers and toes and nose. Her gran was right for the robe and leather pants she wore did keep the core of her body warm.

Kaylee wished that she had spent more time and attention in leaning the words of her ancestors. It sounded almost like a combination of birds singing and the chatter of sqirrels. She was strangely comforting and she felt content listening to the words that her gran was speaking outloud in the chilly autumn evening. She yawned as the rythmatic beat of the drum and the chanting both lulled her into a strange and dreamy like trance quality. Her body swayed a bit in time to both the chanting and the drumming. Part of her wished that she could let go of her Gran and start dancing slowly to the rhythm. She closed her eyes as she continued to guide her gran through the forest towards the beat of the drumming. With her eyes still closed, she was unaware that she had stepped into a gigantic mist that enveloped her whole body.

Daniel and Serena stood at the edge of the mist, the physical veil that seperated the lands of the ancestors, Vellum Hollow, from the lands of the reservations that the Ser'lapham now lived upon. They stood motionless, having just watched Kaylee slip into the dream trance and move foward towards her final destination. Serena slowly lowered the volume of her chanting down until it was barely a whisper. Daniel continued to beat the drum for a few more minutes, giving the powerful majicks at work a better chance to grab hold of the young woman and make her transition into the lands of the ancients smoother. Then he too lowered the single volume beat of the drum until it was nothing more than rubbing against the soft deerskin hide of the head on the drum. Serena grasped hold of Daniel and watched as the slim figure of her granddaughter wandered off straight and proud into Vellum Hollow.

"Ya eet eh," she said finally, her breath's mist melding with the mist of the veil. It was good. The path was made and now it was up to her granddaughter to figure out the rest.

The air suddenly shifted from being cool and dry to being warm and moist on her cheek. The drumming sound continued to beat but sounded further off in the distance than Daniel should have been. It was then that Kaylee heard the strange caterwail of a large preditory bird that she had never heard before. It sounded just off to her left and sounded very close.

Her eyes snapped open. Kaylee did not see her Gran or Daniel anywhere.