In the long, long ago, before the New Age dawned, when we had newly been chased under the Earth there lived a stag named Lleuad.
Lleuad’s pelt was as white as Gealach’s feathers. Some fawnlings believed that Lleuad’s coat was made of moonlight and that he had been blessed when he was born, for it shone shone so brightly that even in the dark of the Underplaces he wore no glowing paint.
Lleuad was a shaman and his magic was strong, and all who saw him knew in their hearts that he would become the Oracle. Fawnlings would come to Lleuad and beseech him to find them favour with the god who had so clearly blessed him - and if t
To return | OF Pilgrimage | Part 4 by femalefred, literature
Literature
To return | OF Pilgrimage | Part 4
It was the last night.
La’Neiya found herself standing as close to the ocean as she could, the waves lapping over her feet, as the pilgrims gathered in a loose group on the sandy beach. It had been a good pilgrimage; they had honoured Gealach, some more than others, and they had been free of the oppressive weight of stone above them for near a season now - or at least Lanny had. Some had been much more fearful.
Her mother of course had not been. Her mother, her wonderful mother, who had birthed her in the hot forests of Silverthorne, guarded her through the cold Blackwood winter and sent her away when there was no more protection to o
To swim in the sea | OF Pilgrimage | Part 3 by femalefred, literature
Literature
To swim in the sea | OF Pilgrimage | Part 3
It had not been an easy journey.
They had travelled only at night, as the guards had suggested, but for some of their number even sleeping during the day had been difficult. The sun’s rays burned with such fury that they halted any rest for many of the pilgrims, and so they were tired and irritable as they walked at night. True, the jungle’s dense canopy provided some cover and the pilgrims could bury themselves among the roots of the great trees, but still the sun beat down on them in a way that they had never experienced in the caves.
Even those able to sleep were weary, for they had travelled quickly and the terrain was not
To wash in the river: OF Pilgrimage: Part 2 by femalefred, literature
Literature
To wash in the river: OF Pilgrimage: Part 2
They had rested, at the insistence of the guards, during the days and walked only during the nights. This was safest, they had said, and Linna had listened. She was not sure it was true, but she had listened and bowed her head. It was important to give them their respect and their due - they did not have to come, some were not on this journey as pilgrims but simply as protectors, and most of all her own little love was among them. Young La’Neiya was not so young any more, she was a tall and elegant doe whose body rippled with muscle as she walked.
The guards were especially wary this evening as the pilgrims came towards the Swan’