Welcome to Gaia! ::

Siofra's attention was on Elias when another started talking to her. Her head turned, thinking it might be okay if Elias was by her side. Maybe just maybe she wouldn't get eaten. Not now, now there were two of them. There was no way they'd get eaten if there were two of them.

"Harn Sheedhiel?" She whispered back, testing out the words on her tongue. No, it all sounded so weird. She started to shake her head, pausing to think better of it. Maybe she should say they were? Siofra nodded, hesitant to let the stranger know she didn't belong. "N-nice to meet you. I'm Siofra, and this is Elias." She squeezed out a smile, introducing her support. Without him she was pretty sure she'd be running for her life right then.

Was there any way she could ask what was going on? Everyone seemed to know what it was, but it still left Elias and her in the dark. Oh man, where was Lelly when she needed her? She always knew what was going on! "How do I get out of here Idalusia?" Maybe they didn't have to get sacrificed and eaten. If this lady from Forn Sheedhiel, wherever that was, knew what was going on, maybe she could get them out of there?

Elias started to get nervous as soon as the other left the line and went straight for the pae that seemed to be at the head of all this. He tugged on Siofra's shoulder to call her attention back to him, "What did you say? I don't like this..." He whispered to her, a nervous frown on his face that quickly turned into a panicked expression. "We should go..." It was kind of crazy to just run for it, but it seemed that, for now, everyone's attention was on the current speaker and they might be able to slip casually into the tree line and then fly away before any of the others could get to them.

It was strange, Elias had spent much of his life wanting to find others like him, and he had found Siofra but still felt like something was missing. Now that he was here, he wasn't sure if he wanted to know about where he came from. Maybe he was better off not knowing, he could be happy with just Siofra. He looked between Siofra and the tree line again, knowing they didn't have much time to decide. He didn't want to just up and leave her, but he didn't want to stick around either.

She tried in ernest to pay attention, truly, but her eyes kept drifting to the green flutter she tried to reassure along with the other incredibly nervous looking teens. The ones that she didn't recognize, that gave her a bad feeling. Shaylee watched as Ida seemed to notice their anxiety too, and started speaking to them.

How nice of her to help the other tree's teens! But then she moved out of the line. Her eyes flicked in front of her to the Harn flutter in front of her, trying to reign in her thoughts. Everything had been going smoothly, why couldn't she shake this feeling? Was it just nerves? She was so suspicious of everyone...

At the sudden outburst of the teen infront of her, her blue eyes flicked over to the side. Ida?! This was highly improper! "Idalusia...!" She spoke in surprise. Could this not wait?!

Belwen was almost half-way through the signs and symbols when she'd felt the arrival of the uninvited guests. But were they truly uninvited? She was going to remain visibly ignorant of their presence until the opportunity to deal with the situation rose. She was fairly confident they wouldn't have left. What she hadn't planned on was the Harn watcher and Mazarine escorting them over. Now things were becoming a problem. She'd just finished with the final flower wreath before the newcomers joined the lineup.

It was with great pride the flutter queen watched and listened to the future of the colonies. They had been raised with kindness and love, and they were all so smart. She was even glad to see that three of their precious lost souls returned home. If only they'd have returned yesterday. No, she couldn't think such thoughts. This was a joyous occasion to celebrate life!

Leave it to the always eager Idalusia to raise awareness. Belwen nodded and shot a glance to the three terrified teens. "I'll handle it, go sit down, Ida---" One of the youngsters from Harn spoke up, but not for the reason Belwen feared, thank goodness.

"Yesenia and Marigold, please sit down, you will get your chance." She nodded to Ida to let her know to return to her seat as well. "Shaylee, would you get the bowl ready for the next stage? Tegeirian, could you keep an eye on our young ones for a moment, I need to speak to Lisian and Mazarine."

When the two requested flutters arrived at her side, she spoke in hushed tones to let them know of the situation. "I don't want to startle them, but we can't suddenly include them, and we can't reveal them to the others yet. I need to talk to them first, but I can't interrupt this ceremony any more than I have. We can't let them leave either. Do what you can to keep them here without any force or letting on that you know who they are. During the next stage, I will distract all of them enough for you two to escort them to one of the Sheedhiels. Keep them together." Belwen dismissed them and took her seat to give Yesenia and Marigold her undivided attention.

"Yesenia, please, continue."

Mazarine returned to his place and smiled softly to each Flutter down the line, nodding a bit to those that he made eye contact with.

He had to admit that he was a little distracted by the rogue teen sneaking over to Queen Belwen in the middle of Yesenia's speech. Odd. He was curious to just what the girl was doing, but leave it to Yesenia to demand attention be brought back to her.

The urge to chuckle was great, but by now he was more so worried as to whether the ceremony would complete now that it had been so rudely interrupted.

He grew even more curious when he was called to meet the Queen with Lisian. Though he quickly found out, he kept his composure and merely nodded to Belwen, the Lisian before returning to his place. He didn't look at the three new flutters among them and instead returned his focus on Yesenia. That didn't stop one of his ears from pivoting and remaining pinned on them. If they'd run off (or try) he'd know.

Nova beamed brightly when Hyperion returned her wave. She tried not to wiggle to much over it, but her cheeks were flushing happily. So he was paying attention! Good. She'd make sure that she'd do her very best to sit as still as she could, like he taught her, and present herself like a well mannered Flutter she was. Oh no look! That butterfly was getting chased by that bird-

Both of her friend's sudden change in attitude snapped Nova out of her wandering thoughts. What was going on? It took her only a second to catch back up with what had been playing out before them. “H-hey!” she cried in shock. Who was her tender!? Someone apparently hadn't taught her proper manners! How embarrassing. Her eyes darted to Hyperion to see if he had a reaction to give. She was so thankful she was in the tree she was in. Would she have been raised so disrespectfully had she ended up in that tree?

She snatched up her friend's hands in her's, gripping them tightly. She hoped the motion would have them realize the eyes that were falling on them. They were Harn and as such they had to present themselves better than this rude female! Relief filled her at that moment though as the Queen began to take charge, “Trust the Queen.” she murmured softly. “We have been raised better than that. Let's show them.” she gave her friend's hands another gentle squeeze before smiling brightly at the crowd. Nothing to see here...

As Ida passed by Nova frowned deeply at her, “Not cool.” she muttered back to her. She wasn't trying to start something, but just wanted to be sure this other Flutter understood how awful that had been of her. This was all a special time for them and to have that so disrespectfully torn away from them... How selfish this other one had to be to have all the focus taken away from them and placed on herself. It wasn't just her turn to shine, it was all of their's. A part of Nova wish she could do it over and give her turn over to Yesenia. Then she could have had given her beautiful speech without interruption...

Nova excitedly released Yesenia's hand and motioned for her to continue at the Queen's words. She gave her friend the most encouraging smile, “You got this, knock 'em dead!” she whispered. What an honor to be called on by the Queen herself! Guess it had worked out in the end!

***

Lisian chuckled softly at Paradise's reply. "They really are." he replied in agreement to her comment. He then gently patted her shoulder before slipping his hand back behind him. It was great to see her so overwhelmed with joy at the occasion. Her pride in her work was overflowing in the form of those tears and it was inspiring. He hoped his love for their community and his family showed as clearly as her's did.

Everything happened quickly in Lisian's eyes. One moment the teen's words were filling him with pride and the next one was halting the whole process. He unconsciously took a step towards the Queen, reading himself in case he was needed. Something wasn't right. That or this young one had gotten a bit over zealous and wanted to keep herself in the spotlight. He waited and watched till she got sent away. A part of him hurt for the ones that spoke up in an apparent outrage towards the interruption. Things like this never went the way you expected them to and he knew they'd learn that soon enough, but still, it did stink for those who'd worked so hard for this day.

A small smile played up on his lips as their Queen easily diffused the situation. It was always a marvel to see her at work with the others. Everyone loved and respected her so and she never took it for granted, but always managed the situation with that in mind. He heard his name called and put his thoughts away so he could answer. He quietly slipped out of his place and made it to her side.

He nodded respectfully towards Mazarine before focusing on his Queen. His eyes slid to the side as he took in the teens that joined them. Ah, so their off putting reactions weren't just because of nerves. There was something else going on here. A part of him was excited at the thought while the other ached. His mind reflected back to Xiu and the difficulties that had come with her. Would these others be the same? They were about to be adults themselves so what damage could they do...?

But like their Queen said, they couldn't be allowed to leave. He'd trusted her with that since their saving of Xiu. He understood it was for the security of their tree, and that's who he was. His whole being was wrapped up in making sure his family was safe. He'd chosen that over anything in the past, and despite the emotional turmoil it had caused in him with Xiu, he'd continue it. “Understood.” he said softly.

He paused a moment as he waited for Mazarine to step away before turning back to his Queen. For a second his eyes danced, “So it worked then?” Even with his tone hushed there was still joy evident in it. All their planning and work... He gave her a soft bow of the head in dismissal before slipping back into his spot. He began to think it over in his head how'd they go about this without alarming the new comers or the others around them. It would be a delicate situation for sure.

As the Forn teenager scurried back to her seat, Marigold caught a glimpse of Idalusia whispering to a pair of nervous flutters. They didn't look familiar at all, and at first she considered it because she just wasn't acquainted with all of Forn's flutters. But something didn't feel quite right about those two. For now, she'd dismiss it, but she'd keep an eye them through the rest of the ceremony.

Nova's comforting touch and Yesenia's confident conclusion was just enough for the elegant flutter to refocus her purpose. She cleared her throat and stood up smoothing her hair down. She shook her tail out to restore some of the bounce. Mari gook inventory of all the eyes on her and she smiled bright. Her stature burst with confidence and her voice was smooth as she began her speech.

"Growing up, I always felt that I would be important. And that I would make a difference to Harn. As I got older, and learned from each of our elders that feeling only grew. Within me, those of Harn cultivated confidence and love. I sit here today, because I was taught that I am important - will always be important - as are all of my fellow flutters." She spoke faster the further into her speech she got. She motioned to all of the flutters when she referred to them. It was hard to decipher if she really spoke genuinely from the heart, or was merely offering platitudes. Only she would truly know the answer to that.

"I trust in our queen. I trust that she speaks for both Sheedhiels and she leads us all. I know she will always lead us with compassion and sound judgement. Queen Belwen," Mari turns to directly address the queen, "I pledge my loyalty to you. I promise to uphold all that I have been taught, and I will protect my fellow flutters."

Following her testimony, she clears her throat once more and gives a pause for effect. She offers a winning smile and turns to address everyone gathered so she can announce her plans for the future. She flipped her hair back and shifted her weight to the other hoof assuming another subtle pose. "Someday, I plan to become Queen of Harn. I will work hard and prove myself worthy to the Sheedhiels that I should be chosen as the next queen. I will be a fabulous queen and lead as my idol, Queen Belwen, has lead us." Mari spoke from a place of genuine care, but she wasn't aware that's not how flutters become queens. Only Belwen knew how that happened, so it wasn't something her mentors could have imparted. "To begin my journey to queenhood, I would like to become a druid and student of Mazarine. I want to help in the best possible way, and I know healing will only strengthen my resolve and teach me what I need to know to achieve my dreams. It will bring me closer to my fellow flutters."

Mari's eyes landed on Mazarine and she clasped her hands behind her back offering a little curtsy. She was so excited to have finally announced her plans so she could openly start pursuing them. She flicked her tail and sat back down with her hands folded and resting in her lap. Even with the interruption, she felt amazingly energized and excited.