Chapter 511: Traditions
"Welcome home, Sir Ollie," an old woman’s voice said as the villagers began to cluster around the wagon. "Your people have missed you," Old Nan chuckled as she walked forward, her intricately carved wooden cane clicking on the stone pavers of the village square as she led the others forward.
"I was only gone for a few days, Old Nan," Ollie said bashfully, placing a hand awkwardly behind his neck as he realized that even more villagers had paused their evening activities to watch or wander over to the carriage and its occupants. "Um, this is Lady Ashlynn, the Mother of Trees," he said, quickly turning to provide introductions.
"And this is Lady Heila, the Willow Witch," he added as the diminutive witch stepped out of the carriage, followed by Virve’s powerful figure. "And Lady Virve," he added. "She, um, she’ll be the Oak Witch in the future, so please, grant her the same honors you would grant to me."
"With sap in our veins and splinters in our fur, the people with wood in their hearts honor the Mother of Trees," Old Nan intoned formally, bowing as deeply as her aging bones would allow her to. Behind her, Milo and the other members of the Heartwood clan fell to their knees, pressing their tails flat on the ground and holding up the tips of their sharp claws in silent supplication.
Members of the other Eldritch clans looked briefly puzzled before they too offered simple bows as appropriate for their own traditions, but it was clear to everyone that a visit by the Mother of Trees meant more to some of their neighbors than they had previously understood.
"You don’t need to lower yourselves so much," Ashlynn said, striding forward and helping Old Nan to stand upright. "Tonight isn’t about me, it’s about Ollie. If you’re going to honor anyone, honor him for what he has done for this village," Ashlynn said, briefly glancing around at the dozens of villagers who had wandered over to the large square.
Ollie had told her that several whole villages had emptied themselves completely to flee from Owain Lothian and Liam Dunn’s attacks this summer but she’d never imagined just how many of those people had come to settle in Ollie’s village. Many had chosen to build homes in the rapidly growing town outside Nyrielle’s ancient fortress, but it seemed like nearly half of the refugees had come here, to the place that he had helped to build.
"You honor us, your Dominion," Old Nan said, her eyes widening slightly as she spotted a simple wooden hairpin carved to resemble a pinecone among the decorations in the hatband of Ashlynn’s wide-brimmed hat. "Thank you for accepting Juni’s gift."
"How could I refuse something made by one of Ollie’s good friends?" Ashlynn said with a twinkle in her eye as she watched Ollie’s awkwardness with the ceremony and the formality of the moment. In time, she was certain that he would get used to navigating these moments with the grace of a man raised to be a knight, but at the moment, she enjoyed seeing this side of him.