Under the cover of night, in light summer rain, she went to the tent of visions, where the wise woman was already waiting for her. The good seer had assured her earlier with some amusement that she was neither the first nor the last to expect a child outside the marriage bed, and she needn't worry. The subject of a vision was always a secret she wouldn't reveal even to the high shaman. Despite this, she had asked for a nighttime visit.
She passed through the entrance flaps and removed the simple hooded cloak under which she'd hidden herself on the way to this meeting, hanging it on a rack made from the antlers of some exceptionally large beast. Under her light linen shirt, the curve of her belly was barely visible. The wise woman, elderly but still spry, an orc with moss-colored skin, encouraged her to sit comfortably on cushions before her. They had fancy patterns that people from the far south prized, probably one of many gifts the woman had received over the years from members of their clan for her services. She belonged to the shaman caste and had the gift of sight. She was able to see the things that had been and those yet to come. The people of the Broken Fang clan valued her for the accuracy and clarity of her visions.
"How are you feeling, child? Are the mornings kind to you?" she asked with maternal concern in her voice.
"Yes, I have to avoid certain foods because of the smells, but otherwise I feel well," she replied, somewhat comforted.
"Good, very good." She nodded approvingly, then looked at her penetratingly and asked, "What would you like to know?"
The young woman shifted, adjusting herself on the cushions, and tucked her hair behind her ear, revealing a light blush on her olive-green face. Finally, after a moment of thought about how to put the matter into words, she stiffened and replied in an uncertain voice.
"Because of who the father is, I fear for the child's future. If it didn't have the gift, he might not acknowledge it and..." she broke off, ashamed.
The wise woman knew about her and the high shaman's first apprentice. Her fears were justified, as most men of that caste were interested in children with the gift who would be able to walk the shamanic path. In such a case, even a lover from the lowliest family could expect to become a wife or, at worst, the most important of concubines.
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"I understand," she replied briefly, then rolled up the girl's shirt and placed her right hand on her belly in a gentle gesture. With her left hand, she raised it above her head and, with a slow movement, brought it down to her forehead. It didn't last long, but to the girl it seemed as if all the air in the tent, the candle flames, and even the shadows somehow leaned toward the shaman for a few heartbeats. If she'd had the gift, she would have seen how the wise woman gathered spiritual energy from her surroundings and used it so concentrated for the spell.
"You worried for nothing," she said with a smile and closed eyes. "I see that the girl has the gift. She will become the pride of her father and mother at a young age."
At these words, a great weight fell from the woman's heart, and she sighed quietly with relief, not wanting to interrupt the shaman, but words of thanks pressed at her lips.
"I see her following in his footsteps and applying herself to the teachings of Mother Nature. She is hungry for knowledge like her father and brave like you," she continued, only to fall silent a moment later, her face darkened, and in a resigned, somewhat sad voice, she added, "Her hunger grows with eating. She strays from the path before becoming a woman. She devours what belongs to the earth. She brings ruin to the clan. I'm so sorry, child, so sorry..."
She broke off the vision and, with a quick movement, gathered the girl in her arms, holding her to her breast. The girl, surprised and devastated by the news, not fully understanding what it meant, wanted to say something, but the shaman put her mouth to her ear and whispered in a soothing, warm voice, "An eagle catches a rabbit because such was his fate. There is no fault in this, neither of the rabbit nor its mother."
She pushed the shocked girl to arm's length and, still holding her, looked deep into her eyes and announced in a certain voice, "You will be able to have other children. You are still young, but this rabbit is for the eagle."
She released her, then stood and took a small pouch from a chest and handed it to the girl.
"There's a handful of dried herbs here. You'll eat them all and wash them down with water before you go to sleep. I'll check on you in the morning. Around noon, you'll start bleeding. I'll be with you the whole time. No harm will come to you."
The young woman took the pouch, threw on her cloak, and with wet eyes went out into the night, but she didn't return home. By morning, she was already far on her way to the lands of the Wolf Rock clan, the only one she knew that had no shamans among them.
