[Day after the Flood - Cynthia's office]


> Wedding? Madyllin nearly choked with laughter, but managed to turn it only
>  into a smile.  Had no one explained to Isara that riders did not marry?  Or
>  possibly, the Nomad simply hadnât understood the admittedly subtle differences
>  between marriage and the mating of riders.
>
>  ãMay I ask who Andorra is marrying?ä
>
>  While Isara told her story of Andorra and the blaster, Nikol, Madyllin
>  covertly watched the Nomad woman.  Never mind that she was a savage - it was
>  clear from looking at her that she loved this man - and judging by the look on
>  her face, that he loved her in return.  She knew for certain that she wasnât
>  going to be the one to tell her the truth.
>
>  ãCynthia will have to approve this - uh, as tribe leader.ä  When Isara nodded
>  complacently, Madyllin knew she was on the right track.  ãSince you understand
>  better what Andorra expects, Iâll let you do the talking.  Besides, Iâm going
>  to have to get to work on this inventory.ä
>
>  Isara nodded and they headed for Andorra to escort her to the Warrenladyâs
>  office.  Madyllin left them at the door and tried once again to get to work.
>

"Come in!" Cynthia called in response to the knock at her office door.

Isara and Andorra entered to find the Warrenlady standing with her back
to them as she thrashed mightily at a small mound of mud in the corner
of her office with a broom.  She turned around to face them in time to
catch the puzzled looks on their faces.  Cynthia smiled in a slightly
embarrased way and tossed the broom so that it landed on the floor
against the wall.  "I think I need a shovel," she sighed, "At least the
Warren records are still in tack," she gestured toward a stack of boxes
next to her desk.

Cynthia motioned toward the chairs across from her desk as she dropped
into her own.  Isara thought that she could feel a little bit of
moisture as she settled down in the seat.  "We are here to ask you about
Dragonridah wedding rituals."

"Really?" Cynthia asked, looking a bit surprised.

Isara furrowed her brow.  Why did it seem that everyone reacted the way
when she broached the subject.  "Madyllin said as chief of Dragonridah
tribe, we should talk to you."

Cynthia smiled slightly.  This had cearly been passed up the chain of
command until it couldn't go any higher.  "As I recall, Nomad wedding
rituals are fairly complex."

"Yes," Andorra answered, "First the man must ask permission to marry the
woman of her father or tribe.  Often he offers a good horse or some
sheep in exchange for a suitable woman."

"Then a time for the wedding is selected," Isara added. "The women of
the tribe prepare a feast."

"The man and the woman," Andorra continued, "go through a ritual
purification by bathing in running water on the morning they are to be
wed."

"Together?" Cynthia asked while considering the possibilities that would
involve Trevor and running water.

"No," Andorra replied quickly, "the man and woman must not see each
other after sundown on the day before the wedding."

Isara nodded her agreement, "It would be bad luck for them to see each
other before they come together in the presense of the head of the man's
tribe.  At that time, the man gives the woman's father her dowry."

"And the head of the man's tribe invokes the gods blessings on their
union," Andorra explained.

"That seems simple enough," Cynthia said, "I can have the kitchen staff
help with preparing the feast.  The rest, you seem to have well in
hand."

"No," Isara insisted. "When there are differences in the ritual between
tribes, the man's tribe's ritual is followed."

"I understand," Cynthia replied, not reall sure that she did.

"Man I want to marry is Dragonridah," Andorra explained quickly.

Cynthia looked surprised for a moment, and then nodded. She leaned back
in her chair.  "Who?" she asked.

"Nikol," Andorra responded with a hint of red creeping into her cheeks.

Cynthia considered her choice for a moment.  Nikol would make an
excellent mate.  There was just one problem, however.  "Dragonriders
don't have much of a mating ritual, I'm afraid," she explained.

Andorra's face fell, "They don't?"

"No, but, maybe this is an opportunity to begin a new custom," Cynthia
said, "We can still use your wedding ritual, if Nikol agrees."

Andorra brightened, and Isara said, "We will ask him."

"I have only one piece of advice, though," Cynthia said with a smile,
"make sure he thinks it's his idea."

NRPG:
A piece of a post.  I think more is coming on Sunday, but Jon (the boy)
and I are going camping tonight through tomorrow.

Darren: I got your message, and it sounds good.  I'll think more about
it while getting eaten by mosquitoes.

Alton
--
    Alton & Elizabeth Reich
     alton.reich@snet.net
"Love is born with solar flares / From two magnetic poles /
It moves toward a higher plane / Where two halves make two wholes"
-- Rush, The Speed of Love



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