A/N- Niva's last name is going to be Andersson, and she has three brothers, Evan, Lars, and Dai. She also has her father, but no mum. Sorry, but I've never pictured her as a mum girl. And thanks to Winterrain for reviewing, muchos gracias!
Niva spread her arms across the ground. "Stop spinning the merry go round, Dai." When she still felt herself spinning, she frowned. "I mean it! There's going to be a whole lot of pavement pizza in a minute!" There was still no reply, so Niva open her eyes and tree-tops waving across the sky. Niva gagged at the sight threw up in the long grass at her side.
"I hate ambient magic," she mumbled into the ground. "Hate, hate, hate it. Why couldn't I have just been a stupid academic or something?" She knelt in the grass until the world stopped moving under her, then pulled herself up and looked around.
Slender, young cinnamon trees had grown up in a circle and they intermingled with scrubby bushes and a few leafy sprouts. Niva twitched her fingers towards the plants and they began to drop their seeds and bits of bark on her. She giggled loudly, then laughed almost hysterically in joy. Mila truly was on her side today.
The girl set to work gathering the supplies she needed. Soon she had a small heap of herbs and spices on a large rock in the middle of her green circle. She sorted through the ingredients, tossing the imperfect bits aside, until she had a good combination.
Niva narrowed her eyes. How can I make it into tea? I need to grind it up somehow and get a teabag. She looked about, and saw a large, smooth rock. It was the perfect fit for her hands. She gripped its sides and mashed it into the heap of herbs on the first rock. She could hear crunching noises and pushed harder. A little bit of rock dust won't hurt anyone.
After several minutes, she lifted her rock to reveal a gritty reddish powder. Perfect! I just need a bag now. An idea flashed into Niva's head and she grinned wickedly.
"I'm sorry for ripping your handiwork, temple seamstresses!" She ripped a large section off the bottom of her cotton undergown and relished the ragged edge that was left.
A quick brush of her hand, and the tea was gathered in the strip of cotton. Niva folded the fabric up and reached deep into her magical self. A glimmer of magic was returning. The girl gripped it and used it to carefully weave the edges of her tea-bag together, before falling back to the ground. The small act of magic was hard to do.
Niva toyed with a bit of cinnamon as she thought about what to do next. I'm ready to go back, except I don't had anything to wear. Not that I care, but Papa would appreciate it if I dressed up. What can I do? She tried to remember what she had heard other novices say about dedication ceremonies. Illena said that a lot of people just paint themselves up with mud. And Norris said some people make clothes out of leaves. . . She snorted and shook her head. The best way to represent the Earth Temple was to be natural. She looked down at the remainder of her undergown, which was streaked with dirt and grass stains. It isn't quite scandalously short. She glanced around surreptitiously, then- seeing no one- stripped out of her dress.
She smoothed it across the ground and held her hand in the air. "Can any of you give me some berries? Or leaves. . . or anything that stains?" She closed her eyes. I must sound ridiculous.
Something dropped into her hand, and then a whole barrage of plant matter showered her. Niva looked at her treasure. "Thank you!" The plants rustled as though a wind had blown through, and the girl felt a wave of acceptance from them.
She grinned and grabbed a fistful of red berries, squishing them in her palm. Sticky juice ran down her fingers and Niva began to paint her dedication dress.
A/N- I hadn't really planned on having the novices make their own clothes. That was accidental. I was sitting here forever, and then the idea for Niva's dress hit me. What did you think?
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