Timestamp: 50th of Spring, 503 AV
Shantiwa was never a woman of overwhelming affections. Since Kaie could remember, her mother was always a little distant. As a Myrian woman and potentially the future matriarch of the clan, Shantiwa had reputation and a level of class to uphold. She always dressed a little more elegantly, especially when visiting Taloba, than other clan members. Once she tried to nudge Kaie to do the same but it proved to be an utter failure. And though Kaie admired her mother's natural leadership, her knowledge, and her composure, they were like oil and water.
Perhaps it was her own upbringing that made her that way, but it seemed where Kaie would rather hone her combat skills, Shantiwa would be trying to drag her off to Taloba. How many times had she been in the middle of a mock war with her friends when her mother had barged in, demanding she pack her things? The answer was far too many. Don't get it twisted, though. Kaie loved, loved, loved to participate in anything that brought her closer to Myri. As a child, she had lived through each and every battle, every feat from the stories Shantiwa recounted. But she felt cheated. For so long she had heard wonderful stories about what "damage" her mother used to do with a spear on the field. Why was it she'd rather parade her through town than share her skills?
In the end, we all get what we wish for. One way or another, it all comes full circle. And that's exactly what happened that morning. Bright and early, Kaie was awoken in their longhouse by her mother. Finally, for once, Shantiwa would teach her something new.
It took a while for them to disappear away from the clan lands into the wild. When they did, Shantiwa finally stopped and ushered her daughter to rest. Obediently, Kaie took a seat upon the earth. Her bright brown eyes stared up at her mother, wondering why she was so suddenly stomping through the jungle.
"There will come a day you will leave our lands, all alone, to brave the jungle. All that you have learned, from the moment you could walk, makes up your training. When it is your time, Kaie, you must pass your Coming of Age," Shantiwa monologued from the start, causing Kaie to almost straighten up in surprise. Apparently this wasn't about to be a mediocre lesson after all. "In your training today, you must know to survive. Anything could happen when alone in the jungle, Kaie. Today I will teach you the tools to survive. First we'll start with starting a fire."
Kaie grinned at that simple feat. She rolled her eyes as if such a lesson was elementary, and presented her mother with a pair of flint and steel from her side pouch. They had been her favorite gift from her last birthday. She had already been practicing, and was starting to get quite good at producing a spark. All that confidence was shot down, however, when Shantiwa all but smacked the tools right from her fingers.
"No. You must learn to survive with nothing but what's around you. Come see," Her mother snapped, turning and walking through the forest. Kaie blew a strand of hair from her face, concealing the growl of irritation building in her throat. Obediently she followed though. It was not the way she had followed her father when he took her out into the jungle. As they trekked through the mud, Kaie had all but leaped from one footprint to another, trying to land perfectly within the tracks left by his feet. With her mother she simply walked parallel, keeping the pace set by her predecessor. There was no better example of the relationships she had with her parents.
