Chapter 119: Outside
Autumn stared at the items handed to her.
A long dark cloak made of thick hide with patches of fur still attached, and a wolf skull...a real one, though it was thus polished that it shined like ivory.
She held them up, unsure what to do with them...turning them awkwardly in her hands. "Uhm..."
The red haired warrior clapped his hands once, delighted. "Wear them, pup! You are royalty. That’s how royals dress before stepping out!"
Autumn blinked at him. "Wear them? "
" Yeah! That’s a mask," He pointed at the skull, "And that one goes around your shoulder! " He pointed at the trailing cloak.
She was trying to figure out which way the skull went, trying it on like a helmet,when a huffing voice muttered, "Oh, for Moon’s sake you old mutts." An old woman pushed her way through the warriors, elbowing the redhead in the ribs.
Surprisingly that actually made him grunt.
Autumn could tell she was a shaman from her aura and the tattoos all over her wrinkled face. She looked ancient...had wiry grey hair knotted into braids, and teeth that alternated between gold caps and actual bones.
"Boys, you always forget the ’how’ of things...ahh, I terribly miss having little girls around.These men have forgotten everything I taught...little girls are eager to learn in the least," she spat, snatching the cloak from Autumn and swinging it around her shoulders like she was dressing a doll. "There. Now hood up and tilt the skull! Let me tie it up for you! We don’t want it rattling like a loose tooth."
Autumn swallowed as the wolf skull was gently fastened to the back of her head with a leather strap.