Post by The Forsaken Subtle Sin Saint on Dec 2, 2005 1:37:11 GMT -8
Unless otherwise stated, all ceremonies are held by the Lawgiver, in the presence of the entire clutch, on the Ceremonial Grounds. The only time the clutch Royalty presides is during a Contest of Law. All decisions are final.
- Naming
The Naming ceremony is performed when an Avian lays her egg, a month before her child(ren) is/are hatched. A Lawgiver will perform the rite as follows: after the egg is lain, it is cleaned and laid in it’s Nest (cradle). The Lawgiver then says, “In the presence of your family and the souls of your ancestors gone before, I name you (insert name here; parents, inform the Lawgiver of the name ahead of time). You are now a member of the (insert clutch name here)” The actual laying the egg is done by the male of the pair hooking his arms under his mate’s arms (please skip the part about removing undergarments, no one really wants to read that) so she can be in a standing squat. The Lawgiver catches the egg when it is lain, then places it in the Nest and proceeds with the ceremony. - Hatching
The Lawgiver is summoned, and he/she will wear special ceremonial robes. Both parents also wear ceremonial robes. A Hunter will have brought venison from the Common Realm in advance. The eggs remain in the Nests until they hatch. The father has the bath water ready, the mother the clothes, and after they clean and bathe their Hatchling, the Lawgiver takes the babe and says "Before the ancestors and living members of (insert clutch name) clutch, you, (insert name), son/daughter of (insert names), are now officially a member of our family." Then they feed the baby, and the festivities begin. Usually the shells are discarded, though on rare occasions, a piece will be kept and made into jewelry, or in the case of the Ravens, ground and made into paint for another exquisite painting of a future egg. - Caste
Every Avian, upon turning the human equivalent of 18, is called to the Time of Choosing. During this ceremony, it is decided (and approved by the majority of the clutch) what caste the individual will belong to. Most choose to be ordinary members of the clutch, but some wish to be Hunters, Consorts, or chosen as a successor to the current Lawgiver. If the person becomes a Hunter, they are given a Krai staff, a powerful weapon described more in Warcraft. Upon the final decision, regardless of caste, the Avian is then gifted a Jet Arrow. - First Song
When a female Avian is in love for the first time (usually the only time, considering they mate for life), she will let the fellow she desires know by singing what is called the First Song. It's a particularly elegant song, filled with all the things she feels about him, letting him know that if he would have her, she would be his forever. But after that song, she is unable to sing again until he either asks her to handfast with him, or informs her that he does not wish to do so. This means that she is unable to use the Deep Lullabye, or any other spell that requires singing.
Usually, rejected females, shamed and sorrowed, will become Royal Consorts. In either case, she regains her song as soon as the male in question informs her of how he feels. This is not a ceremony usually performed in public, though the girl will usually ask her parents to witness the Song, since it is both a coming of Age song and a formal way of telling them this is the man she wishes to be handfasted to. If a different male desires her and the one she sang for did not wish to be her mate, he may speak up for her hand, rather than allow her to become a Royal Consort. - Hand Fasting
In lieu of marriage, Avians are hand fasted. (Dragons are married, and their ceremony will be described here briefly) A Lawgiver takes a ribbon and ties the intended’s hands together. The vows, said first by the female as the ribbon is being tied, then repeated by the male, are as follows: “As we bind our hands, we bind our souls. An Avian takes but one mate, and I choose you, until the time the Lawgiver takes our souls to rest.” If one of the betrothed happens to be of another species, the line “until the…takes our souls to rest,” is adjusted to suit the situation. Then the female plucks a flightfeather and ties it in her mate’s hair, saying “I give you my first flight feather. Wear it always.” (see Spells and Transmutations for the significance of this gift.) Again, if one of them is of a different species, this step of the ceremony is altered to suit the needs. Then the male builds their Nest, which is his gift to her. - Consorts
Consorts are basically servants to the crown. They do not take mates; usually widows and females who do not wish to take a mate are willing consorts. Contests of Law can result in the creation of a Consort from another caste, and this will be addressed in Interclutch Strife. They are not lower class citizens, and as in the case of the Royal Consort Tien e, they are often revered for their chastity and service to the clutch. (Tien e became Royal Consort because she is the only Avian that has the ability to scry, and as eldest daughter to the Crow royalty, she chose to stay and serve the clutch rather than marry.) - Becoming an honorary clutch member
The Crows are usually the only Avians who accept offworlders as honorary clutch members, but when an Avian marries, the male becomes a member of the female's clutch. At any rate, to be inducted to a clutch, a person must first seek permission from the clutch royalty. Then with the royal approval, the Lawgiver will usually take the newcomer and the rest of the clutch to the Ceremonial Grounds, where the Lawgiver holds both his hands out to the newcomer, who must stand before him/her. The Lawgiver's eyes go solid black as all the souls within come to the fore, and together they chant, "As soon as our hands touch, you are bonded to us. Your spirit is (insert clutch name here), your body lives to keep the clutch from harm. Your spirit lives to keep your body from harm. With the ancestors of the (insert clutch name here) clutch and (insert the name of the person that wants this person as an honorary clutch member) as witness, you are now a brother/sister of the (insert clutch name here) clutch." Then the newcomer takes the Lawgiver's hands, and the souls will pour out from the eyes and mouth of the Lawgiver and filter through the eyes of the newcomer, leaving a mark of the clutch on his/her soul before returning to the Lawgiver. Someone will need to be on hand to catch the Lawgiver, as they invariably fall weak after this intense ceremony. The weakness is temporary, like having the wind knocked out of you. When the Lawgiver recovers, he/she creates a Jet arrow from a flight feather the Queen provides, and bestows it upon the newcomer, explaining the use and powers of the arrow. The new honorary clutch member is then bound by clutch law when in Beyond, and obligated to behave in keeping with tradition. This means if you're an honorary Crow and they declare war on someone, you have to fight on their side, even if they're declaring war against your race. All Avian law applies to you, so have a care when accepting this honor, as it is no light thing, bestowed or claiming. - Funeral
If an Avian dies in Beyond, their bodies are rushed to the Ceremonial Grounds, where the entire clutch attends them. The Lawgiver absorbs his or her soul, joining them with all the deceased ancestors of the entire clutch, barring those who were lost or executed. If an Avian is born deformed, is injured to the point of being unable to survive unaided (ie, wings torn off, missing limbs that are magically unable to regenerate), or if they are too old to live unassisted, they are ritually consumed by the entire clutch. The Avian’s mate will consume the heart, the offspring will consume the eyes and brain. Then the rest of the clutch consume the corpse until there is nothing left.
If an Avian has committed an act punishable by death, he or she is slaughtered by the clutch royalty, his or her soul is barred from entry to the Lawgiver’s body, and the corpse is tossed into the sea. Until Subtle (during her Blackbird incarnation) discovered it, no one knew that the execution of an Avian is what causes Raiders to exist. Raiders are the lost souls of Avians who were not absorbed by Lawgivers upon death. If an Avian dies offworld, as in on Earth or in the Common Realm, their soul simply ceases to exist, like when a Raider is destroyed during the Fall Hunt.