Dream Catcher

Chapter One - The Circle

The wind bit into my skin, sending a violent tremor across my skin. I wrapped my blanket tighter around my torso. My legs and feet were bare, sinking softly in the damp grass. My dress slid against my thighs, the swish swish of fabric offering me solace on this cool hallowed night.

"Come child, it is almost time. Unless you are afraid of the asabikeshiinh?" My grandmother said with a cackling laugh. I smiled. Asabikeshiinh were dream catchers, the guardians who watched us in our sleep. Though few still believed the old legends my grandmother and I (to a certain extent) still did. Tonight I would turn sixteen; according to the asabikeshiinh legends I would become a woman, and possibly a guardian myself.

The woods behind our home seemed alive tonight. The wind, though biting, nipped playfully at our heels, slipping through the trees, rustling the leaves above us. The grass beneath my feet rippled in the wind, tickling my toes.

We slipped deeper into the woods towards what grandmother called the sleeper circle. She always laughed when she said it, but she'd laughed at stranger things. I shook my head with a smile and pressed forward into the dark forest, humming an old lullaby under my breath.

My grandmother turned back to look at me, a strange look crossing her face. Confusion and, pride? It vanished with a whisper of the wind. She snorted at me.

"Are you going to continue at a caterpillars pace or complete your ceremony? The moon will not wait for you child." She retorted, her eyes filled with amusement. I blushed and walked faster until I was alongside her.

Several moments later I caught sight of a light further ahead. Until now I'd been using grandmother's path as guidance, now the gentle glow guided my way.

My brisk walk turned into an eager jog, excitement coursing through my veins. I'd been looking forward to this for months now. I knew I wouldn't be a dream guardian, it just wasn't possible, but the ceremony meant I could become a full fledged healer like grandmother. It was everything I'd been hoping for since I was old enough to collect herbs.

I reached the glow within moments. It was a fire, green flames licking at the wood. The wood had been soaked in an herb mixture and left to dry before being lit tonight. The fire sent a surge of heat through me, producing a sheen of sweat on my forehead.

I sniffed cautiously, the herbs brought a pleasant, slightly metallic scent to my nose. I inhaled deeper before looking around the fire. A stone pit of clay, dug into the ground, held the fire, hardened by decades of use and heat. Drums, flutes, paints, masks, baskets, weapons, pots, a small totem, a mortar and pestle and herbs were strewn around the fire. At each item sat a member of the clan, each skilled with their item.

Only one item had no corresponding clan member. A dream catcher swaying gentle from the hilt of a beautiful gleaming sword. The mark of the dream guardians. A dream guardian was reborn infinitely throughout time, guarding the clan as needed, traveling through dreams and their own past lives. I shook my head and shuddered, it was too much violence for me. People must be healed, not harmed.

I turned to my grandmother, taking another deep breath. She held the mortar and pestle, a healers tools. Her face was blank, her usual twinkle of mirth gone from her eyes. Nervousness began to trickle its way into my body, like a stream of rain water through an ant hill.

Would I succeed? Would I make grandmother proud? Would I be worthy of a healers touch? Breathe Kajrah, you can do this.

I closed my eyes, took in another deep breath, and steeled myself. I opened my eyes, determination coursing through my mind. I looked around the circle of clansmen and women. They'd all completed their rite of passage, several depending on their skill set. I could do this.