#earthrunes

Frank rubs the base of his horns.....

Then takes her hat off and waves it to the crowd as she moves towards the gardens

And outside, troubadours can be heard singing

🎼 ‘Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba Sithi uhm ingonyama.
‘Nants ingonyama bagithi baba Sithi uhhmm ingonyama Ingonyama Siyo Nqoba Ingonyama Ingonyama nengw’ enamabala’

And with the group, they all move to the garden.

Siv laughs at that.

Behind Siv, Shalimar follows chanting "Remember, thou art mortal. Remember, thou art mortal"

Frank offers Brekke his arm.

Brekke gives Frank a helpless look, then takes his arm.

And as they go into the garden , Siv sees it, hovering overhead!

The Kestrel, glorious and bright, hovers near the ship-like obstacle course, like what the obstacle course might dream of being. It is decked with streamers and banners...and in the crows nest stands Baroness Coradel.

Kerri's eyes go wide. "Chieftain...." She goes to Brekke's side.

Sylvi also looks concerned, but Brekke shakes her head. "I gave permission for this," she says calmly.

Siv looks up "no way" Her eyes bright

Zara smiles at the scene. Dagmar - she start, but manages to cut off a pre-emptive cheer at the sight of the ship.

From high above, Coradel can still make her voice heard. "Welcome! Today, we welcome a new Lioness into the pride...if she is so bold as to claim her space. Baroness Brekke of the Grimhand has been gracious in allowing the use of her vessel, the Kestrel, for this purpose, and I thank you, Baroness."

Brekke gives a formal nod back, and then looks at Siv.

Clapping for the Chieftain

"Now, Captain Siv Wavebourne...you came to us for guidance. We taught you, and challenged you, and I have seen you stumble and falter and fuss!" Coradel seems to be taunting her. "And I have seen you take great risks for great reward, both for yourself and for others. Do you want to become Fiona, Captain?"

Vince, standing off to one side, blows his nose noisily into a silk handkerchief and in a stage whisper proclaims, "I always cry at weddings!"

Piper had joined Sylvi at her invitation, and tentatively joined the conversation, complimenting one of the Fiona sidhe on her particularly fetching hairstyle.

"With all the passion in my body and hope in my heart, Aye!" Siv declares

"Remember, thou art only a seaman..." Shalimar starts to say, when someone yanks him back into the crowd with a crook

With Siv's declaration, Connor dangles off a ledge he has found he could climb up to hand hang monkeylike, spare hand flailing a flag.

"LASSIE BON BONS BRULEE!" He yells!

"Then if you would have a place in this pride, Little Miss Lioness, you had better climb up here and claim it!" Coradel calls down.

Emma claps and gives Connor a BIG thumbs up!

And Siv climbs, using the dueling stage she's mastered like a winding ladder of ropes and ramps and more!

Sylvi smiles at Connor, then calls out, "Go, Siv!"

An ear-splitting whistle as Piper tucks fingers in her mouth and blows! "YOU GOT THIS, CAP'N!"

And then, a good thirty feet up, she leaps to the hovering Kestrel to grab a rope off IT"S side.. if she can

Brekke takes a deep, slow breath as Siv starts to climb, remembering a young childling climbing those very ropes....

And she seems to miss! Only at the last moment is it obvious she 'missed' the ledge so she could grab the rope and use IT and her momenteum to swing her up to land on the deck of the Kestrel

Sylvi and Kerri both gasp...and they're probably not alone.

And then cheer!

"my frickin heart" Gerd mutters

"Very nice, Captain...but you are not a Lion yet..." Coradel calls down from the crows nest.

Frank sighs.

Siv lowers her hat, "I've never been afraid of yet" And tackles the climb with gusto!

"It is true," Brekke murmurs to Frank. "She has not."

"Siv, Siv, Siv!" A chant, encouraging!

Jonas is trying HARD not to pace under the ship like a wolf unable to reach his mate.

Chanting grows as others join in

Coradel watches, pacing slightly in the little area of the crowsnest.

Impatient, perhaps.

Siv gets to the top with one last flip up!

Oh, she almost does. Almost.

In the last moment as she prepares that flip, Coradel's hand flickers, and suddenly she has a blade aimed at Siv's throat.

"Stop there, Captain."

Frank rumbles agreement to Brekke, wordless, watching.

The appearance of the blade makes Brekke tense.