Very Short Author's Note: Thanks to LadyRhiyana and Vesica, whose reviews
triggered an extra chapter. :-)
Chapter Two
Jaenelle ghosted through the forest as quietly as a puff of air, and Liriash cast an approving look over her shoulder. The cub had been distracted and clumsy when she first arrived that morning, but when she relaxed she was as easy in the woods as any wild thing. Whatever had been troubling her, she'd forgotten it for now; she was bright-eyed and interested, intently watching every footstep Liriash took.
As well she should. She'd taken it into her head to watch Liriash maintaining her Webs, and the cat, recognizing the curiosity of a natural Black Widow, was glad to show her how the Kindred did it. As far as she knew, no humans had Webs like this, great structures that spanned generations - Liriash had added refinements since she came to den here, but the Web's basic structure was far older than she was.
"Do they help you see things?" Jaenelle asked, frowning curiously at the anchor line that ran under her feet.
*They're mostly for defense, but if you spend as much time with them as I do, then yes, they'll give you visions. And _you_ could probably do anything with them that you wanted to.*
"I can't," she admitted, shamefaced.
*You - cub, of course you can. I've seen what you do for _fun_, and that's far beyond what most witches can do.*
"But I can't do what everybody else can! I try and it goes wrong or falls apart or shows me things I don't _want_ to see-"
*Cub.* Liriash stopped dead in her tracks, effectively blocking the way for both of them, and pressed up against Jaenelle's side with a rumbling, reassuring purr vibrating through her chest. *_No_ one can do what everybody else can. Falan can't weave Webs, I can't Heal-*
"You can't?" Jaenelle's eyes widened in concern. "But Healing's wonderful, and it's not that hard, really it's not."
*But I still can't do it.* Not that she really felt the loss; much as she loved it, the Black Widows' Craft was quite demanding enough. *A good Healer has to be open; a good Black Widow has to be wary. It's a rare witch who can find the balance to be both, and even rarer to have the gift and the balance at once.*
"...Oh." Jaenelle didn't say anything else as they walked the Webs, just followed Liriash with a pleased and faintly surprised expression on her face, like a cub who'd gotten an unexpected compliment. Liriash was glad of the pleasure, but couldn't understand the surprise - surely Jaenelle understood how rare her gifts were? Liriash had known the child was a Black Widow and suspected her Healing gifts - and no one with a Jewel and the mind to use it could miss that she was a Queen - but a youngling with those three gifts should be bursting with the desire to use them, not tentative and afraid of being caught. Not for the first time, she wondered where Jaenelle's dam was and what she could be teaching the cub.
With Jaenelle watching closely, she finished walking the Webs, tracing the pattern to the center of the main Web and pouring power into it from her Green Jewel. She sealed it with an intricate little flourish of power, an intertwined lace of Green-glowing lines that hung in the air for a moment before fading into the Web. As far as she knew, only the Kindred knew the way of that little knot, and it was what let them create Webs that outlived their weaver.
That done, Liriash stretched luxuriously - proud as she was of her Craft, it was always like lifting a burden to have the Webs tended for the day - and followed Jaenelle back to the clearing where the coven denned. Midway back, Jaenelle bounced into a run - Black Widow she might be, but she was still a cub before anything else. Liriash huffed in mild exasperation and trotted after her.
In the clearing, Halla was drilling the yearling cubs, male and female alike. The male cubs' lessons would continue longer; Arcerian males rarely banded together as the witches did, which meant that male cubs had to face the double threat of survival on their own and territory challenges from other males. Halla poured herself into those lessons, passing on everything she'd learned in her long life - the coven couldn't risk having full-grown males nearby when the next litter came, but they still wanted the best for their sons.
And Halla, despite what Liriash would doubtless hear later from the current group of bruised and resentful cubs, gave them the best.
Jaenelle plopped down on the grass to watch, with a dubious look toward the young Prince Halla was sparring with. "What's she _doing_?"
*Teaching them,* Liriash answered, stretching out alongside her. *Fighting, hunting - Falan teaches them Protocol, which has kept more young males out of trouble than I'll ever be able to count - and Halla teaches them what to do if they get _in_ trouble.*
"Oh." Jaenelle brightened. "Can I try?"
Mother Night. Liriash squeezed her eyes shut and dropped her chin to her forepaws. *She's much bigger than you are-*
"So's Sceron, and _he's_ teaching me how to use a bow."
_Definitely_ still a cub. The kind that chewed your ears and climbed over your head if you tried to keep it in the den. *And she's got a lot to keep her busy right now. She's worried about that Prince, and I don't blame her.*
"What's wrong with him?"
*Nothing - if he survives, he'll make a good Prince. But the things that make a good Prince make an overconfident cub, and right now he stands an even chance of getting killed by some strange male because he tried to take his territory.* Worry made her inner voice sharp, and Jaenelle frowned in shared concern.
"Can't he ask to share?"
*It takes a lot of game to feed an Arcerian. And as you may have noticed, males aren't terribly good at talking to each other,* she added dryly.
That got the hint of a giggle from Jaenelle, but a moment later she flinched back against Liriash's ribs as Halla let out an echoing snarl. Liriash, who'd seen this at least once a season for years, sat calmly as Halla sprang on the yearling Prince, bowling him over in a tangle of fur and flashing teeth. There was always one in a litter who tried it - usually some male who asked why he needed to pay attention to a past-her- prime hunter. Which was when Halla left sparring behind and showed him _exactly_ why he should listen.
So she watched with lazy interest, only the tip of her tail twitching, and after a moment Jaenelle took her cue from Liriash and relaxed as well. Though they both winced when Halla finished her lesson with a resounding cuff to the unfortunate cub's ears. Jaenelle looked worried for the cub, and Liriash gave her a reassuring nudge. *He's fine - and now he knows not to pick fights with stronger Blood.*
"But did she have to hit him so hard?"
*She wants him to learn. Halla worries about all the cubs, whether they're hers or not. Asking her not to worry is like asking the river to run backwards.*
"Oh." Jaenelle paused, struck by a sudden thought. "Do you want it to? Because I could-"
*NO!* She was caught for a moment between amusement and the desire to bolt for her den, where things made sense. *That's all right, cub, we like the river the way it is.*
Jaenelle nodded in acceptance and leaned back against Liriash's side, apparently quite content to watch the clouds if she couldn't reverse the course of a river. _And she thinks she can't do Craft..._
It was puzzling, to say the least - Jaenelle should have been an adept witch already, with all the power that radiated from her. But Arcerians were powerful too, and their cubs were born with spots and stripes to keep them hidden until they reached full strength. If Jaenelle needed camouflage, then Liriash would do nothing to disturb it; the Arcerians, and all the Kindred, needed her too badly.
Chapter Two
Jaenelle ghosted through the forest as quietly as a puff of air, and Liriash cast an approving look over her shoulder. The cub had been distracted and clumsy when she first arrived that morning, but when she relaxed she was as easy in the woods as any wild thing. Whatever had been troubling her, she'd forgotten it for now; she was bright-eyed and interested, intently watching every footstep Liriash took.
As well she should. She'd taken it into her head to watch Liriash maintaining her Webs, and the cat, recognizing the curiosity of a natural Black Widow, was glad to show her how the Kindred did it. As far as she knew, no humans had Webs like this, great structures that spanned generations - Liriash had added refinements since she came to den here, but the Web's basic structure was far older than she was.
"Do they help you see things?" Jaenelle asked, frowning curiously at the anchor line that ran under her feet.
*They're mostly for defense, but if you spend as much time with them as I do, then yes, they'll give you visions. And _you_ could probably do anything with them that you wanted to.*
"I can't," she admitted, shamefaced.
*You - cub, of course you can. I've seen what you do for _fun_, and that's far beyond what most witches can do.*
"But I can't do what everybody else can! I try and it goes wrong or falls apart or shows me things I don't _want_ to see-"
*Cub.* Liriash stopped dead in her tracks, effectively blocking the way for both of them, and pressed up against Jaenelle's side with a rumbling, reassuring purr vibrating through her chest. *_No_ one can do what everybody else can. Falan can't weave Webs, I can't Heal-*
"You can't?" Jaenelle's eyes widened in concern. "But Healing's wonderful, and it's not that hard, really it's not."
*But I still can't do it.* Not that she really felt the loss; much as she loved it, the Black Widows' Craft was quite demanding enough. *A good Healer has to be open; a good Black Widow has to be wary. It's a rare witch who can find the balance to be both, and even rarer to have the gift and the balance at once.*
"...Oh." Jaenelle didn't say anything else as they walked the Webs, just followed Liriash with a pleased and faintly surprised expression on her face, like a cub who'd gotten an unexpected compliment. Liriash was glad of the pleasure, but couldn't understand the surprise - surely Jaenelle understood how rare her gifts were? Liriash had known the child was a Black Widow and suspected her Healing gifts - and no one with a Jewel and the mind to use it could miss that she was a Queen - but a youngling with those three gifts should be bursting with the desire to use them, not tentative and afraid of being caught. Not for the first time, she wondered where Jaenelle's dam was and what she could be teaching the cub.
With Jaenelle watching closely, she finished walking the Webs, tracing the pattern to the center of the main Web and pouring power into it from her Green Jewel. She sealed it with an intricate little flourish of power, an intertwined lace of Green-glowing lines that hung in the air for a moment before fading into the Web. As far as she knew, only the Kindred knew the way of that little knot, and it was what let them create Webs that outlived their weaver.
That done, Liriash stretched luxuriously - proud as she was of her Craft, it was always like lifting a burden to have the Webs tended for the day - and followed Jaenelle back to the clearing where the coven denned. Midway back, Jaenelle bounced into a run - Black Widow she might be, but she was still a cub before anything else. Liriash huffed in mild exasperation and trotted after her.
In the clearing, Halla was drilling the yearling cubs, male and female alike. The male cubs' lessons would continue longer; Arcerian males rarely banded together as the witches did, which meant that male cubs had to face the double threat of survival on their own and territory challenges from other males. Halla poured herself into those lessons, passing on everything she'd learned in her long life - the coven couldn't risk having full-grown males nearby when the next litter came, but they still wanted the best for their sons.
And Halla, despite what Liriash would doubtless hear later from the current group of bruised and resentful cubs, gave them the best.
Jaenelle plopped down on the grass to watch, with a dubious look toward the young Prince Halla was sparring with. "What's she _doing_?"
*Teaching them,* Liriash answered, stretching out alongside her. *Fighting, hunting - Falan teaches them Protocol, which has kept more young males out of trouble than I'll ever be able to count - and Halla teaches them what to do if they get _in_ trouble.*
"Oh." Jaenelle brightened. "Can I try?"
Mother Night. Liriash squeezed her eyes shut and dropped her chin to her forepaws. *She's much bigger than you are-*
"So's Sceron, and _he's_ teaching me how to use a bow."
_Definitely_ still a cub. The kind that chewed your ears and climbed over your head if you tried to keep it in the den. *And she's got a lot to keep her busy right now. She's worried about that Prince, and I don't blame her.*
"What's wrong with him?"
*Nothing - if he survives, he'll make a good Prince. But the things that make a good Prince make an overconfident cub, and right now he stands an even chance of getting killed by some strange male because he tried to take his territory.* Worry made her inner voice sharp, and Jaenelle frowned in shared concern.
"Can't he ask to share?"
*It takes a lot of game to feed an Arcerian. And as you may have noticed, males aren't terribly good at talking to each other,* she added dryly.
That got the hint of a giggle from Jaenelle, but a moment later she flinched back against Liriash's ribs as Halla let out an echoing snarl. Liriash, who'd seen this at least once a season for years, sat calmly as Halla sprang on the yearling Prince, bowling him over in a tangle of fur and flashing teeth. There was always one in a litter who tried it - usually some male who asked why he needed to pay attention to a past-her- prime hunter. Which was when Halla left sparring behind and showed him _exactly_ why he should listen.
So she watched with lazy interest, only the tip of her tail twitching, and after a moment Jaenelle took her cue from Liriash and relaxed as well. Though they both winced when Halla finished her lesson with a resounding cuff to the unfortunate cub's ears. Jaenelle looked worried for the cub, and Liriash gave her a reassuring nudge. *He's fine - and now he knows not to pick fights with stronger Blood.*
"But did she have to hit him so hard?"
*She wants him to learn. Halla worries about all the cubs, whether they're hers or not. Asking her not to worry is like asking the river to run backwards.*
"Oh." Jaenelle paused, struck by a sudden thought. "Do you want it to? Because I could-"
*NO!* She was caught for a moment between amusement and the desire to bolt for her den, where things made sense. *That's all right, cub, we like the river the way it is.*
Jaenelle nodded in acceptance and leaned back against Liriash's side, apparently quite content to watch the clouds if she couldn't reverse the course of a river. _And she thinks she can't do Craft..._
It was puzzling, to say the least - Jaenelle should have been an adept witch already, with all the power that radiated from her. But Arcerians were powerful too, and their cubs were born with spots and stripes to keep them hidden until they reached full strength. If Jaenelle needed camouflage, then Liriash would do nothing to disturb it; the Arcerians, and all the Kindred, needed her too badly.