A hand fell upon Tahki's shoulder as the old one, known as Nolwazi, shifted her old bones up off her rock seat."Ah...it feels good to stretch my legs. Come young one, walk with an old cougar so she can feel the grass around her knees again."
The elder leaned on her staff as she walked slowly. The staff itself was a thing of wonder. It was as stout as any freshly made but Nolwazi had always had it. Strange feathers hung from brightly colored cords and small wooden trickets made a tinkling sound as she walked. No one could tell how old she was, she had been around as long as everyone could remember. Some say she was an adult long before the war even came to pass. Her fur was grey and dusty, it must have been a lovely shade of black and yellow when she was young. But now, the black had faded with time and the yellow and grown more dull.Tahki blinked at the kitten that emerged from the nearby grasses. Did she know her? She didn't think so. How could she have not seen her around before? It was puzzling, but not that unusual she supposed.
Deciding that the elders didn't need her to send a message afterall, Tahki was about to leave when the wise one beckoned her along. Not one to refuse an invitation from her elders, let alone such a repected member of the tribe, Tahki nodded and offered her shoulder for support should the old shamaness need it. As if on a second thought, Tahki held out her elbow, gently placing Nolwazi's free hand on it in invitation to use her for support as they walked.
The teen smiled slightly, ears twitching at the sounds from the old one's staff. She was somewhat curious about the odd feathers and trinkets that hung from the cords, but wasn't sure whether or not she should ask about them. Instead, she merely enjoyed the sight and sounds from them, her tail swishing calmly behind her as she kept pace with the elderly shamaness.
"Is there anywhere in particular that you'd like to go?" she asked suddenly. Her voice sounded strange to her after the general silence between them. Silence with the exception of the natural sounds of the plains that is. The wind whirled about the two, carrying the sounds of distant prey animals that traveled throughout the plains, searching for food, water, or each other.
"Of course, there is always a place to head to. Can't talk a walk if you don't have a destination in mind."
The old one chuckled and seemed to guide Tahki rather than the other way around. She knew this land, both by smell and touch, so she knew where she was headed. There was a large tree in the savannah, it grew taller than the giraffes that at its youngest leaves. It was there Nolwazi stopped and settled down. She had Tahki sit with her. Now, for the test."Tell me Tahki, what do you feel in this place?"
Tahki couldn't help but chuckle softly at the elder's response. She had a very good point, but then again, she was quite wise, right? The two walked together for some time before halting beneath an enormous tree. Tahki had come here herself only a couple times on her own. The tree itself was staggering in size and its mere presence was imposing. There was something about this tree though other than its size that set it apart from any other tree on the plains. No matter how hard she tried, however, Tahki could never exactly pinpoint what this 'something' was.
But, Nolwazi's question puzzled the young teen. Feel? What did she feel in this place? What did that mean exactly? Frowning, she decided to voice her thoughts aloud. "I'm sorry, I'm not sure I understand... What do I feel in this place? Like, the wind crossing the plains? The sounds of the prey animals in the distance, beyond even where we can see?" Tahki had no idea if this was what Nolwazi was asking or not, so she just continued talking, inadvertently drifting into her personal thoughts that she normally shared with no one else. Tracing a claw absentmindedly through the dust at her feet, her voice grew softer as she mused aloud.
"Or maybe the feeling of untapped power that seems to flow just beneath the surface of everything around us; the earth, the trees, even the air itself. As if waiting for someone to discover its power and learn how to reach into it, to use it." Her eyes were unfocused as she continued tracing abstract forms into the dirt. She trailed off and fell silent for a moment before shaking her head slightly, her eyes refocusing. Staring at the ground in surprise, she stammered, losing her calm demeanor for a moment, "Err...I'm sorry. I don't know what I'm talking about. Just...silly musings I guess."
"Nothing we say is 'silly musings' my dear. Everything we say has some sort of meaning. Even if we can't understand it ourselves. Even the youngest kitten may seem like she is babbling, but she's really trying to tell us what she is feeling; what she is thinking; what she is seeing. We just can't understand her because we do not speak her language. She has to learn to speak ours."
The old one leaned against the tree and stared up into the branches."Everything speaks Tahki, everthing has a voice. You just have to know how to listen and learn their language. This tree has a voice, this grass has a voice, even the wind has a voice. So tell me, what do you feel here?"
Tahki listened silently with some disbelief. Her ramblings were supposed to make some sort of sense? She found that hard to believe, but....if Nolwazi said so...
She stared at the ground for a moment, only now seriously looking at her scratches in the dust. Frowning, she thought she could pick out the image of crude sun and moon shapes, crossing and merging together...
She shook her head, rubbing out the etchings. "What do I feel...?" she muttered, mostly to herself. It was some time before she raised her voice again, still gathering her thoughts. "Age. A feeling of ancient knowledge and power." She ran her hand lightly over the rough bark of the tree, eyes sharp even though she seemed to stare off in the distance again. "It's hidden, at least from physical sight. Though available for anyone who would possess the knowledge and will to claim it." She tore her stare away from the tree to focus on Nolwazi. "There's something special about this tree, isn't there? I know there is, but try as I might, I can't discover what it is...but I feel it somehow. Age. Ancient knowledge. Power of those past." She closed her eyes tightly, wondering where all this was coming from. She'd never been able to put her thoughts into words like this before, but she still felt like she was rambling and that it made little sense.
She never thought she would ever discuss these strange feelings and observations with anyone else. She'd never shown any signs of special skills or abilities before, other than her love of running and that wasn't all that impressive she thought. If any such power existed, it was meant for discovery by another, right?
"Oh yes, this tree is very special. You want to know a secret? Well, I planted this tree when I was about your age. I found the seed and knew this would be the perfect spot. They lead me here, and said it would be a strong hold for me and my power. And it seems...they speak to you as well."
The old one smiled. Ah she remembered the days when she would come to give the seed its water so it would grow tall and strong.The teen listened to the elder's story, wide-eyed and attentive. It was only belatedly that she realized there was something in Nolwazi's story that seemed odd. Enough so to catch her curiosity at least.
"Wait...'they?' Who led you here? And speaking...to me?" Tahki was flustered and seemed to have lost her usual calm demeanor. She seemed more child-like than she had in some time, acting more her age as a young teen in fact.
Who was this mysterious 'they' that Nolwazi mentioned. This group seemed important if they had had so much to do with the wise one's past. And what could they want with Tahki? What was it that they were supposably saying to her that she was supposed to hear?
"The spirits. The entities that inhabit everything on this world. Everything has a spirit. Also our ancestors are always with us, for their bodies are buried beneath us. If you know how and they want you to hear, you will know what they say. So give it a try, listen with more than just your ears."
Her own ears occationally twitched and turned in random directions.Tahki frowned, all of this a bit too much for her to absorb all at once. The spirits? Speaking...to her? Why would they speak to her? Why choose her of all Cougars? She was nothing special afterall.
And besides...what if they didn't want her to hear? What then?
Sighing, Tahki nonetheless tried to do as Nolwazi said, focusing with all her senses, not just her ears. For a while, she heard nothing more than the chirp of a bird somewhere high in the tree and the wind whipping past her ears. She tried not to get frustrated, but it was difficult. Even Tahki had the short patience of a teen to deal with.
Then it happened. The tree, the ground beneath them, and even the air whirling about the two seemed to pulse faintly with some mysterious force. As the pulse grew stronger, the teen was startled to realized that she wasn't just hearing the birds in the distance...she could
feel them. Well, maybe not
feel them, but there was no other way to describe it. Sounds she couldn't possibly be hearing echoed through her head and she struggled to deal with this strange phenomenon.
"I think...I can hear it," she finally whispered, eyes wide as she stared unseeing at the ground. Maybe she wasn't hearing words or anything like that, but she was hearing...something. It was more like a feeling. If the spirits were speaking, she couldn't understand them yet...but she could tell that they were speaking and that was impressive enough for her. She'd never imagined anything like this before and the poor teen was nearly overwhelmed. Stretching this new form of 'hearing,' she wondered what else she might find, but stopped suddenly upon touching something new...and not altogether inviting.
No longer was she only hearing the cries of distant animals and feeling the signs of chaos on the wind. She could feel the disturbance in the very mountain itself. Shivering, she quickly withdrew from the foreboding presence, hastily returning to her own warm, familiar savanna. It was as if a dark shadow had swept over the area. Frowning, Tahki shook her head and cleared her vision. This was no longer a fun trick or a mere distraction while taking a walk with an elder. This was serious. Something very dangerous was up in those mountains and now that she had felt it herself, the entire situation seemed all the more real and frightening to Tahki.
"Very good. I have been watching the signs and I thought you might be the one the spirits spoke to me of. And I can tell you have felt the presence in the mountain as well. Not a comforting feeling, but at least known ahead of time."
The old one shook her stick, letting the tinkling of the wood surround them."No be calm, but keep a small bit of yourself open ot the spirits' voices. They can warn you of danger. But for now, you must thank them for letting you overhear them. What do you think we should leave the old tree in thanks?"
Tahki seemed puzzled yet again. What sort of gift did one leave a
tree? She thought long and hard, furrowing her brow with eyes closed. That's it!
"I've got it!" she blurted, grinning like a child as she took to her feet and practically flew across the savanna. Her feet skimmed lightly over the ground, only the slightest bit of dust swirling in her wake. It was dry out here, sometimes uncomfortably so, making it difficult for vegetation to take root, let alone thrive. Perhaps she could make it a little easier on the great tree to hold out until the next rainstorm visited the savanna.
It wasn't long before she arrived at a small oasis. The tribe used this place for water when the rains were scarce. Miraculously, this place alone never seemed to run dry, even in the worst droughts. Now, how to carry it...? She hadn't brought any water flasks with her since she hadn't exactly planned on this. Bending, she took a drink for herself as she thought. Time to get inventive.
Plucking a large, waxy leaf from a nearby plant, she muttered a quick word of apology and thanks. Recent events had left her rather sensitive to actions like this, afterall. Rolling the leaf into a cone shape, she scooped some mud from the beneath the water's edge, sealing off the bottom of the leaf. In the dry heat of the savanna, the mud dried quickly and she dipped the make-shift carrier into the water, filling it as much as she dared. She had to carry this back swiftly she knew. Cradling the cone of water carefully, Tahki was off once more, racing over the dry, shifting sands.
Somehow, most of the water managed to survive the trip and Tahki was quick to kneel, pouring the precious liquid around the roots at the base of the great tree even as she muttered a quiet word of thanks.
"Very good Tahki. You will learn more as you open yourself to the spirits. We will continue your training later. Now I think my old bones would like to take a nap, let us head back now."
The old one took Tahki's arm again and they slowly made their way back to her hut. There, she took her seat fell right to sleep. 
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