“…. for the... the… the paths before us,” Olrich sputtered through the last few words of the prayer.

Olrich’s stumbling prayer brought Orn back to reality. The images of the shrine were glowing angrily. The faces of the goddesses carved into the sides of the loom seemed to glare at him. Ignoring the figures, he slowly turned around. How much did they hear?

Every person in the room was staring at him. His mother was smiling tears welling up in her eyes, while his father had a stupefied grin on his face. Orn scanned the rest of the faces in the room, finding a combination of shock and joy.

Surprisingly Olrich was the first to recover. “Orn has found favor with the goddesses! Praise be to their kindness!”

His parents jumped out of their seats to hug him. His mother was crying and his father, who was himself on the verge of tears himself kept muttering “We are so proud…”

The staff who were present were standing and beaming at Orn. Some were cheering others were crying, as they watched Orn being embraced by his parents.

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Olrich meanwhile tried to get everyone to calm down and go back to their seats. Olrich finally managed to pry Orn’s parents off of him repeating the phrase “We have to finish the ceremony.” His mother seemed to understand first and lead his father back to their seats.

Olrich cleared his throat and signaled for the crowd to sit back down. “The goddesses have blessed you with a path. This will determine your place in the great tapestry. So that others may know you, I present you with your plaque.” Olrich took out a small brass plaque and placed it Orn’s hand. Then he swiftly pricked Orn’s finger with a decorative ring, and curled Orn’s hand around the plaque.

Orn could feel the plate grow warm in his hand, as Olrich continued. “This is the final gift from the goddesses, a token to let all know who you are and the path before you.”

Turning back to the crowd Olrich added, “And now I will lead the congregation in a singing of the Hymn of the Loom while the pathed and his parents retire.”

Olrich’s voice slowly began to drone out a hymn, as Orn and his parents walked out of the small chapel. Orn’s parents maintained their composure as they walked out of the room and to his father’s study at the other end of the hall.

That composure immediately disappeared once the study door closed. As the door latch clicked, Orn felt his feet leave the floor. His father had lifted him off his feet and was swinging him about. “A knight! I am so proud of you!”

His mother watched laughing, as his father lifted him high grinning like an idiot. With a quick hug his father set him down in one of the armchairs in the study.