Celestial Roots

Chapter 7 - A training that goes too far

The next day, Taghna was quick to share with Færn what she had heard during the night. She had urged him to finish his meal and they had moved away to be able to talk in peace. The children had gotten used to never staying idle and, while Taghna was telling her story, the two were picking buds that grew on trees and bushes.

After listening carefully to the summary of the discussion, Færn remained thoughtful for a long time. Taghna took the opportunity to assail him with her own questions, wanting to know his opinion on Rissar's particular remark about learning through the body. To her, that was the real mystery. But in front of Færn's silence, she began to lose patience. His lack of will, or worse, curiosity, was not something she took lightly:

- Færn, I'm talking to you, are you ignoring me or what?

- It's strange, he replied without taking into account his friend's last remark. What are they talking about when they say they can't know before the stroïgil?

This remark cut Taghna off in her tracks. She was more interested in the first part of the discussion and thought that the rest was less important. But now that Færn was pointing to this idea, she felt she had made a mistake.

The children had never wondered if there were things that adults could not know. They answered all their questions and seemed infallible, both in the collection of food and about the village's past and the function of each villager in the community. Their very way of behaving, as if they were never really concerned about what was around them, reinforced this idea.

- You think they actually don't know what's going on during the stroïgil, do you? asked Taghna.

- I don't know about that. It seems more like they can't know in advance how it's going to go. As if we were as likely to pass as or not...

This thought made the two children shiver. Until now, the future seemed to them to be set in stone. They learned to survive on their own, got ready to participate in the ceremony of adulthood before perpetuating the traditions of Séaroën.

- Yet all the adults took part, didn't they? continued Færn.

- Yes, yes, I think so....

- So it's weird, they should know if we're going to become... durchar, right?

It took them a few minutes to think about this option, continuing their actions mechanically. Failure was not part of their thoughts and the adults never told them that what they were doing was not good enough.

- Well, either they know and don't tell us, or they don't know, concluded Taghna.

This did not reassure them either. They continued to collect more and more fresh shoots. Without them noticing, the Hir was coming to an end. The temperature was sometimes so mild that they no longer wore their mittens. As they licked with pleasure the sap of the burgeoning flowers, their fingers would get covered with sticky liquid. More insects were buzzing in their ears and supplementing their food.

They focused for a moment on gathering resources and then distinguished Maoïr behind a dense séarach bush. The master, on all fours on the ground, was lost in thought. Taghna and Færn immediately looked at each other and thought the same thing. They started running towards him. He welcomed them as usual with a simple "Hello, children" while showing no sign of interest. He was breathing a handful of dirty snow. The crystals were covered with soil and dead grass. His eyes darted around and then he resumed his search.

Taghna and Færn were reluctant to interrupt Maoïr in what seemed to be a particularly important analysis. They waited a long time before deciding to ask in unison: