Clanluna

Clanluna

Chapter 53: Sungaea men

Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling
Earth’s Children is owned by Jean Auel


Once Durc had awakened and been informed of the decision of the mog-urs, Zeen and Goov retired to their teepees to sleep. Ayla didn’t have that luxury, which was fine as she was well rested. Returning to her teepee, she prepared a soup for her sleeping mate, made from some dried mammoth meat, herbs from her medicine bag and some grain seeds she’d gathered the day before. Although the Weeches of the Clanluna kept a small garden of magical and medicinal plants each year. Luna had not introduced them to the idea of growing large fields of planted grains. As a result, grains were a spice, not a staple for them. The mouth-watering aroma of Ayla’s soup woke her mate.

“That soup smells very good!” signed Zar, as he sat up a little to drink his tea. “So what are you plans for today?”

“This woman thought she might take some of the women and gather some berries to make popsicles,” replied Ayla.

“Are you going to have Zeen cast the charm that keeps them from melting?” asked Zar, who knew that Ayla couldn’t cast the Stasis Charm.

“No this Weech thought she might approach it as a potions problem,” replied Ayla. “This Weech was thinking that if she ground some aurochs hooves into the juice, she might be able to get them to retain their shape at warmer temperatures.”

“Good idea!” replied Zar, who understood the theory behind potion making but was unable to brew them, himself. “This man will see if Durc wants to lead us on a hunt. . . . . . It’s nice to be away from the girls for a while. This man is tempted to invite you ‘hunting’,” signed Zar as he gave his mate a steamy leer.

Ayla smiled back at her mate, as her heart warmed.

“The Clan men wouldn’t like that. It’s not clan,” pointed out Ayla. “Of course, you could take this woman as part of a group to gather plants and guard us while we work . . . And if you were to get Needs while we were out, no one would be surprised if you gave your mate the Signal to Relieve them . . .”

“Good idea! Gather a group of women for berry picking. This man will guard you,” announced Zar.

After, breakfast, Ayla gathered together all of the women of Flamel Clan, as well as two other Clans to go berry picking. As predicted, watching Ayla, dressed in a clan-style summer wrap that barely covered her hips, bending over to pick berries did, indeed give him Needs for her to Relieve.

After they’d returned, Ayla, squeezed the berries, heated the juice, them mixed some herbs and ground aurochs hooves in. She then poured the juice into cups, stuck a stick in the juice and cast a freezing charm on the juice. After pulling the popsicle out of the cup, Ayla transfigured the shape to make it long and thinner, not cup shaped. While the finished product resembled a popsicle, as they warmed, they became jiggley. Ayla had invented gelatin.

While Ayla was handing out her jellosicles to the Clan Gathering, Zeen came out of his teepee, having previously awoken and been fed by Igra.

“Would you like to ride on Bop?” asked Zeen.

When Igra’s daughter nodded, he picked her up and placed her on the Cave Bear’s back. Brouda lay flat against the Cave Bear’s back so they could fit through the doorway of the teepee, before sitting up. As soon as Zeen led the Cave Bear with a girl on his back out of the teepee, people began staring. Zeen and Brouda paid them no mind as they processed towards the Host Clan’s cave. Seeing that Zeen was giving Cave Bear rides, the children of Flamel Clan followed them, and children from other Clans soon joined them.

“That’s enough, let someone else ride now,” signed Zeen.

Brouda frowned in disappointment, before sliding off the Cave Bear and giving him a quick hug before stepping away.

“Who would like to be next?” asked Zeen.

“Me! Me! Me! Me!” shouted Corg as he held his hand up.

Zeen pulled his wand from behind his ear, and silently levitated Oga’s last and ½ clan son over the crowd and onto Bop’s back.


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After spending the afternoon giving bear rides to the children and some of the braver adults of the Clan, Zeen asked Ayla to escort Bop back to his teepee. All afternoon people had been giving him treats, but Ayla still needed to feed him some of the plants the women of the Clan had gathered to help him build up fat for his winter hibernation.

Zeen apparated to Gurg’s cave, so he could make a portkey, to bring Gurg’s Clan back to the Clan Gathering, for the night.

While Zeen had been giving Ursus rides to the children of the Clans, Durc was in the sling competition. He’d graciously let each of the other Clans go first. Men from four of them had succeeded in hitting the post. Durc reached into a fold of his wrap and pulled out the two stones he’d carefully selected ahead of time. He paused and grasped his amulet bag to silently ask the spirits of the Wolf and Luna to guide his throw. Opening his eyes again, he whirled and slung the stone. As the sling came down he slipped the stone in and slung it on the up swing.

TWAP! TWAP!

Both stones hit the post!

The other men gaped, dumbfounded at what they’d seen!

Durc raised his arms and gave off a wolf howl in triumph! It had taken him years to master his mother’s two stone trick! And the work had paid off!

“This man doesn’t think there is any point in continuing,” signed one of the finalists.

The other men nodded their agreement.

“Could you teach me how to do that two-stone trick?” asked the man who had led the concession.

“No! Why should I teach you my tricks?” sneered Durc.

The other leaders took note of this, as Durc hurt his chances in the Leadership competition.


Next was he bola competition. It lasted for 6 rounds before Grev won. But no one liked the way Grev gloated over his victory.

In order to avoid the owls being hunted, they only delivered messages to and from Zeen after dark. After the reading the note from his mother, Zeen wrote a quick reply and sent the owl back to Luna before going to sleep for the night.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

The next morning, Ayla and Zar prepared to take a group of women plant gathering again.

“Zar!” called Durc. “This man is leading a hunt.”

“This man was going to guard the women while they gathered plants,” replied Zar. (a partial truth)

Durc stared at Zar. Although he knew Zar was signing truth, he also knew that his mother didn’t need protecting and guessed what Zar was refraining from saying.

“You don’t need to Relieve your Needs all day! Come hunting with us! Mama can protect herself!” signed Durc.

“This man will go hunting with the Clan,” replied Zar, resignedly.

Ayla was disappointed to see her mate leave with the men. She took the women out to gather plants. Because the Clan signs required the use of hands, their conversations occurred at a glacial pace as the women searched for plants and gathered them with an occasional glace at each other to sign an isolated sentence or two. Although the Clanluna women could have used a spoken language while using their hands, Ayla though to do so would be rude to the Clan women who didn’t understand.

“So Ura, how did you like spending yesterday with Gurg’s Clan?” asked Ayla.

“It was wonderful! This woman went gathering with her mother and we caught up,” signed Ura. “She didn’t quite understand about my becoming our Clan’s clanluna. She doesn’t understand the difference between Medicine Woman and clanluna. Is that ergot growing on that grass?”

Ayla nodded and bent to gather the mold growing on the grass for her medicine bag. “This woman is glad you had time to catch up with your mother. What’s that over there?”

Ura looked where she was pointing at the movement of the bushes in the distance. A human head emerged from the bush. Even at this distance she could tell it was one of the Others because his hair matched the golden blonde shade of Ayla’s. Before anyone could shout out a warning, a group of men sprang from the bushes and ran at the women! All of them had either red or blonde hair. Ayla’s fear that they had come to have their Needs Relieved were confirmed when she saw one of them give the Signal to a Clan woman.

(Where had he learned that?) thought Ayla as she watched the Clan woman assume the position. She saw that the other men were also giving the Signal. Sighing, Ayla didn’t wait for the Signal and went ahead and assumed the position facing away from the men.

“Ayla get up!” hissed Ura, in English. “You don’t have to Share Pleasures with every man who comes along!”

Iga and Luna had been trying to convince or of this for years and Ura’s reminder brought back the memory that for the Sungaea, to force a woman to Share Pleasures was taboo. So these Sungaea men were violation the rules of their own culture. Rising to her feet, Ayla reached for her sling, only to remember that she’s left it packed in the traveling gear in the teepee so she wouldn’t be tempted to use it. As she turned around the blonde man charging at her came to a sudden stop when he got a look at her face. The shock was visible in his expression. Ayla pulled her wand out.

“Stupefy!” shouted Ayla, as a red beam of light projected out of her wand to stun the man.

When Ayla shouted out her spell, all the men turned to look at once!

“It’s the Luna! Run for your lives!” yelled a red-headed man, in Sungaean, as the Others all turned and fled.

“We should take him back and see what the mog-urs think we should do,” signed Alya before levitating the stunned Sungaea man. “Wingardium Leviosa!”

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“This mog-ur thinks we should let the men of the Others Relieve their Needs with our women if they want to,” signed the 6th ranked mog-ur.

“My Clan would never stand for that! This mog-ur fears that if we let the men of the Others near our women, they’ll twist the women’s totems and make them have bad-luck deformed babies!” signed the giant 3rd Ranked mog-ur.

“You mean like This Mog-Ur?” asked Zeen. “It is true that the men of the Others like to press their lips to the lips of the woman when they Relieve their Needs, thus, increasing the chances that the woman will swallow his spirit. But remember the memories of things to come that This Mog-Ur showed you? All Clans everywhere are under a Death Curse! Children with mixed spirits like This Mog-Ur are the only hope for the future of the Clan! We need children with mixed spirits!

Don’t you agree, Bop?”

The full grown Cave Bear that Zeen had been using as a back rest, grunted in reply, when Zeen turned to address him.

“Maybe if the men of the others want to Relieve their Needs with our women, we should send some of our women to them so they can swallow Others’ spirits and make mixed babies like The Mog-Ur?” suggested the 4th ranked mog-ur.

Ayla squirmed she wanted to speak up at this but knew that, as a woman, she shouldn’t even be present at a meeting of the mog-urs, and wouldn’t be, were it not for the fact that she had used magic to bring them a prisoner. Zeen caught her eye and nodded.

“That wouldn’t work. The Others’ consider it wrong for men to Relieve their Needs with women who didn’t encourage them to give their version of the Signal. This man,” signed Zeen, as he pointed at the Sungaea prisoner. “has broken the rules of his people. The Others wouldn’t want their men to Relieve their Needs with women who don’t encourage them.”

“Maybe we could get volunteers?” suggested the 4th Ranked mog-ur.

“Since their women don’t encourage them enough to Relieve their Needs, perhaps the Others might be grateful if we brought them our women who would encourage them to give the Signal and give us gifts?” suggested the 5th ranked mog-ur.

“If you want deformed children, you can have ours!” signed the 7th Ranked mog-ur to Zeen. “It seems like every year the men of the Other’s make our women Relieve their Needs!”

“The Others have their own Clan Gathering,” observed Goov, the 2nd Ranked mog-ur. “The fact that these men of the Others found us means their Clan Gathering must be somewhere nearby. We should send Ayla back with the man to face punishment from his people for what he’s done and if any women volunteer, they can go with her to help Relieve the Others’ Needs. If we are lucky, maybe some of our women will swallow the Others’ Spirits and have their totems defeated to make mixed babies?”

“My Clan’s Leader will never let our women do this!” signed the 7th ranked mog-ur.

“Neither will my Clan’s Leader!” signed the giant 3rd Ranked mog-ur.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

It had taken the rest of the day to get word out to the Clans and find women who were willing to encourage men of the Others to give them the Signal. In the evening, Zeen had sent his mother an owl to explain the situation.

The next morning, Ayla prepared to leave with her prisoner, Daedelusarpedon of the Sungaea, Ura, and seven Clan women who had volunteered to help the men of the Others.

“Portus!” said Zeen as he touched his want to a discarded shard of flint. “Here’s a port-key that will bring you back here when you are ready to return.”

Ayla nodded in acknowledgement before drawing her wand and pointing it at the bound Sungaea man.

“Take us to your Summer Meeting!” commanded Ayla, in Sungaean.

“Yes, Weech,” replied the man as he rolled to his feet and set out with Ayla behind him, pointing her wand at him. The other women fell in line behind her, by ranking.

It was late afternoon when they saw the Sungaea Summer Meeting, in the distance. Ayla pulled out and enlarged a teepee and supplies, before levitating the teepee into place so Ura could fasten it together. Once camp was set up, Ayla put on her lion hat.

“Ura and this woman will take him to be punished by his people,” announced Ayla. “The rest of you, stay here.”

Ayla reached into her Medicine bag and pulled out a stone vial full of veritiserum she had made.

“You! Drink this!” commanded Alya, in Sungaean, as she poured the potion down the throat of her prisoner. “Wingardium Leviosa!”

As Ayla entered the Sungaea Summer Meeting, the sight of her wearing a Clan-style wrap around her hips with her chest bare and what looked like the head of a still living lion on her head, while she levitated one of their men over her, both drew a crowd and kept them at bay. Ura followed close behind. Everyone wanted to get a look at Gaea walking the Earth. But the fear, made them watch her from a distance. The crowd parted as she walked amongst them. If anyone was brave enough to approach her, a growl from Ayla’s hat reminded them to keep their distance.

The Sungaeae tent had been replaced since Ayla had last seen it. But the new one was of the same design as the old one, so she easily found it. People had run ahead to warn them, so the Sungaeae were well aware of Ayla’s approach. When Ayla arrived, a Red-foot, dressed only in a reddish leather skirt with her soles dyed red, held the flap to let Ayla and Ura into the tent.

The assembled Sungaeae, Those-Who-Serve-the Mother, were seated in a line at the other end of the tent. In the near side of the tent were a group of influential women with an isle to left Ayla in.

“Aila, it has been a several years since I last saw you yet look as beautiful as ever,” said the elder woman in the center of the line Sungaeae. She was 1st amongst those-who-Serve-the Mother.

“My name is Ayla, not Aila,” corrected Ayla. “Ayla of the Abraxas Clan of Clanluna, born to the Sungaea, adopted to the Hearth of Creb, The Mog-Ur of the Clan of the Cave Bear, 1st Ranked Medicine Woman, Weech, Mated to Zar, Mother of Durc, Leader of the Flamel Clan of the Clanluna, and also Mother of the Weeches, Iza, Mariza, Creba, Zuna, Zara, and Crara. Protected by the Spirit of the Cave Lion.

“ROAR!” said the hat.

“My apologies, Ayla,” replied the woman. “Look I’ll get right to the point. We know why you’ve brought Daedelusarpedon before us. His accomplices have made full confessions and threw themselves on our mercy.”

“And what was their punishment?” demanded Ura.

“Excuse me! Who is this abomination?” asked one of the younger Sungaeae.

“I am Ura of the Flamel Clan of Clanluna, daughter of the giantess, Oda of the Clan of the Cave Bear. Mated to Durc, Leader of the Flamel Clan of the Clanluna, she-who-Serves-Luna for the Flamel Clan of the Clanluna, Mother of the Weez-Ur Zeerc!”

“And you will treat her with respect!” warned Ayla, as she dropped Daedelusarpedon, whom she had been levitating.

“ROAR!” said the hat.

Daedelusarpedon yelped in pain as he hit the ground.

“For trying to force flatheads- Sorry, Clan women to Share Pleasures, the men involved in the attack had been banned from Sharing Pleasures for a year.”

Ayla and Ura nodded. They had expected this.

“In addition to bringing him,” said Ayla as she glanced at Daedelusarpedon, in disgust, “We have a message from the mog-urs of the Clan of the Cave Bear. The men who came to Relieve their Needs with us, knew how to give the Signal. This is a Clan sign that Clan men use when they want to Share Pleasures. But Clan customs are such that no woman may refuse if a man gives her the Signal. By your standards, it might seem that Clan women are unable to give consent, so that anytime a Sungaea man ‘Shares Pleasures’ with a Clan woman he is forcing her to Relieve his Needs. Many Clan men fear that if Sungaea men have too much contact with Clan women, it will cause Clan women to have babies with mixed spirits like Ura, my mate, Zar and my son, Durc. Other men of the Clan hope that if their women are around the Sungaea, they will have children of mixed spirits.
Women of the Clan have signs that they can sue to encourage their men to give them the Signal to Share Pleasures. Since the Sungaea women are unable to Relieve the Needs of your men, we have brought with us some Clan women who have volunteered to Share Pleasures with your men in the hope that this will discourage your men from sneaking off to give the Signal to Clan women that might not want to Share Pleasures with them.”

All during Ayla’s speech, the women present had been murmuring and now that murmur had grown into a roar of outrage!

One woman in the crowd, just to her feet and yelled: “My mate doesn’t need to Share Pleasures with some dirty animal! You keep those flatheads away from him!”

“We know there are men listening outside the tent!” said another woman. “What if our mates are going down there to Share Pleasures with the Flathead does right now?”

This caused a panic amongst the spectators, who suddenly began rushing to exit the tent.

The 1st ranked Sungaea bent her head forward to rub her temples.

“Looks like we’ve got a mess on our hands!” said one of the other Sunagaeae.

“I move that Daedelusarpedon get the same punishment as his, accomplices, that we put out an announcement that the ban on Sharing Pleasures with the Flat-
Clan women, is still in force, and that we’re having a Mother Festival tonight.”

The Sungaeae discussed things some more and were still in discussion when Ayla and Ura left the tent. But the area outside the tent was almost deserted! Ayla and Ura realized why at the walked through the camp and heard the distinctive sound of Pleasures coming from nearly every tent.

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Some time later, the heralds circulated to announce the Mother festival that night. But when it came time for the event, hardly anyone showed up as people had unofficially started without the Sungaeae, hours before.

Still, in spite of this, there were some men who snuck down to Ayla’s teepee to ‘Share Pleasures with the flatheads’. Some came because none of the Sungaea women were interested in them. Some came because that thought the idea of Sharing Pleasures with a Flathead was kinky.

Ayla and Ura built a fire outside the teepee and spent the night talking by the fire while the Clan women were busy.

“Do you mind if I join you?” asked a tall blonde man with sea-blue eyes. His hair and eyes matched Ayla’s.

“If you’re looking for Clan women to relieve you needs, they’re in there,” said Ayla, as she pointed to the teepee.

“Actually I wanted to talk to you,” said the man. “I’m Perzeusolon. Would like me to name all my ties?”

“That’s not really necessary,” replied Ura as Ayla waved her wand and said the command word to levitate a large log over so he could join them sitting by the fire. Since the sun had gone down, both women had wrapped furs over their shoulders to help protect them from the night chill. The fur cloaks were open in front as the fire kept their fronts warm. Ayla had shrunk down and put away her hat.

“So, is it true that the Leader of your people is the Great-Mother-walking-the-Earth?” asked Perzeusolon.

“No,” replied Ayla.

“Yes,” replied Ura simultaneously.

“I should explain,” clarified Ura. “Most of our people believe Luna is the Great Mother.”

“But a few of us don’t and she denies that she is,” added Ayla.

“Well of course she denies she’s the Goddess!; huffed Ura. “She’s testing our faith!”

“Are you a goddess?” Perzeusolon asked Ayla, with a smile that made her tingle.

“What? No!” denied Ayla. “I’m just a Weech like Luna and our daughters!”

The Sungaea man spent the night chatting with the two women. The next morning as he walked away Ura said:

“You’re disappointed that he didn’t give you the Signal, aren’t you!”

Ayla blushed at her son’s mate and looked down.