Ceremonies
First MeetingsAs a mother nears the end of her pregnancy, she enters a birthing cave and stays until she lays her eggs. The entrance is guarded in turn by the female and her mate, with somebody constantly on guard. Neither dragon hunts or leaves the cave, and food is brought to them by other members of the pack, who do not enter the cave or try to look inside.
After one week, the mother leads the infants to the main cave (barring a snowstorm) where they are solemnly introduced to any member of the pack who is not on guard. Once this initial introduction is over, a great feast begins, with all the dragons sharing prey that has been brought in for this occasion.
Boarders are not allowed to participate in this event, and are kept away from the infants at all times unless there are at least two heirs or fosters present for every boarder.
Adulthood RitesUpon reaching adolescence, young dragons are escorted to the border by an adult and left to live on their own for a month. Should they return before the the month is up, or refuse to take the test, they will never rise beyond the rank of Youth.
BondingThe two dragons that wish to bond (or have already bonded, and wish to have the bond recognized by the pack) are escorted to the edge of the territory and must make it back to the central cave, only relying on each other. On the way, they are beset three times by members of the pack.
For the first test, a youth, usually a child or teen, will run around and between the two dragons, trying to trip them up or wedge between them. All means short of force are allowed, and the pair must stay together without directly addressing the youth or doing anything to harm or acknowledge the youth. The youth will keep up this constant harassment until either one of the dragon trips and the other helps them up or one of the dragons loses their patience, losing the test.
For the second test, the bonded pair will be separated for a day and a night and two unpaired dragons will do their best to seduce them or make them feel like their mate is betraying them. Any sign of jealously or going along with the seduction will result in failing the test.
For the final test, a bonded pair will talk to the two dragons about the struggles of life and all of the bad things that can happen, all of the despair and hardship. The bonded pair must then say that it is worth it, as long as they have each other.
Once the bonded pair reach the main cave, weary and exhausted, both mentally and physically, they will find a grand feast waiting for them, with all of the members of the pack not on guard duty celebrating their return. The youth will step before them and speak of their patience, the unbonded dragons will speak of their loyalty, and the bonded pair will speak of their love and undying devotion, as well as all of the wonderful things about being bonded, how all of the pain goes away when your loved one is there by your side.
AdoptionThis starts out as an altered form of first meetings, and the Boarder is taken to a cave by a bonded pair that will "adopt" them. They stay for a week before they are brought back to the cave, where they are greeted joyfully and spend a merry day and night before they are escorted to the edge of the territory to pass the adulthood tests.
Transition of PowerOnly bonded heirs may rule, but they must be deemed eligible by the entire pack. During this ceremony, all bonded heirs (and their mates) are brought before the pack in the main cave and grilled extensively, with any member free to question them on any aspect of their leadership. Those that pass this initial examination must then prove their leadership abilities and trustworthiness by guiding a blindfolded pack member to a nearby cave. At the cave, they are blindfolded in turn and brought back to the main cave. At no point may the blindfolded dragon be touched or aided, for this results in automatic failure of the test.
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