Ta'Ardenai/Seasonal Courts

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The Seasonal Courts of Ta'Ardenai

Perhaps one of the most poetic and ancient calls to history, the Dawn, Dusk, and Twilight Ceremonies (the Erenien'aethir, Naira'aethir , and Veleriel'aethir) of the Vernal, Estival, Autumnal, and Hibernal Courts are steeped in deep tradition and continue to this day despite the cultural, engineering, and arcane advancements that would normally render them obsolete within Ardenai society.

Long-standing traditions created when the Ardenai were first settling in the northeastern region of Elanthia are honored by following the ancestral movements and migrations of the original settlers of the region, and while many Ardenai do not move very far from their homes or travel in these patterns, the nobles of Ardenai continue to do so. This way of honoring the traditions of the past has a very practical application in that it brings the courts to the people of Ardenai without requiring them to travel to the more centrally located city.

While the nobility moves from court to court as the year progresses, there are minor nobles and seneschals that maintain the various courts in their absences. They are responsible for location law enforcement, maintenance of the surrounding lands and property, and care for the local people. These governances are each comprised of seven Lords and Ladies that act as a council known officially as the "Evergreen Council of ___ " (such as the Evergreen Council of the Hibernal Court) and colloquially as the "___ Governance" (the Hibernal Governance, for example). The positions are well regarded and held in high esteem.

Hibernal Court

Located within the large forest known as the Ardesyl, where two rivers (the Vyr'Masaein and Arelvyr) join together and form the Lasvinne River, the Hibernal Court is an ancient fortress that is at one with the faewoods and celaeun redwoods that grow to towering heights in this region. The ancestral founders first chose this site as the harsh winds that beat upon their coastal lands during the season of winter were buffered by the arboreal giants that grew there. However, the ancestors eventually came to live here because of the great bounty of berries, nuts, and tubers that grew despite the depth of the season. Small, fur-laden animals also sought shelter within the forests and eventually supplemented their early supplies with furs, meat, and even companionship. Indeed, the aneuli coney, an incredibly large and sleek member of the hare family, eventually fell out of favor as a source of food or fur and has become a household pet that is adored by many.

• Court Colors - Royal Blue and White
• Court Symbol - a seven-tined white elk on a starlit field of royal blue

The three ceremonies of the Hibernal Court are Heralds of the Long Dark, Stormriders of the Creeping Forest, and Serenades of the Snowdrop.

Erenien'aethir: Heralds of the Long Dark

The official opening of the Hibernal Court happens at the rise of Lornon either before, after, or during the Winter Solstice. The nobles of the court, their retinue, and any guests arrive at the Dawn Gates of the Hibernal Court and make their way into the courtyard where the Hibernal Governance greets them with traditional pomp and circumstance. Once the formalities are ended, the Governance invites the attendants to a winter garden filled with entertainment, food, bonfires, warming tents, and music. The festivities last until dawn, whereby seven snow buntings with royal blue ribbons tied to their legs are released. Three of these birds are homing birds and will travel to the Vernal, Estival, and Autumnal Courts, announcing that the Hibernal Court is now in occupation and accepting petitions. The remaining four birds are sent to Ta’Illistim, Ta’Vaalor, Ta’Loenthra, and Ta’Nalfein with the same news.

Naira'aethir: Stormriders of the Creeping Frost

It is said in the early tales of House Ardenai’s founding that four riders appeared on the outskirts of the settlement seeking shelter from a winter blizzard that was hammering the region. They were given shelter for the night and for the three days that the storm buffeted the area. At dusk on the next day, as their hosts were preparing supplies for their departure, it is said that they simply vanished. In their place, each hosting household was gifted with either a horn, a bow, a vambrace, or a brooch. Mythology holds that those hosting households experienced a year of plenty.

In honor of their benefactors, these households started the tradition of holding a grand banquet in honor of the Stormriders. Each year, four members from the surrounding hamlets, farms, and towns of the Hibernal Court are selected and honored at the banquet. They are temporary guardians of the items that the Stormriders gifted to those original households, which are still to this day in circulation, and will be the ones to select their benefactors for the following year.

Veleriel'aethir: Serenades of the Snowdrop

Held at twilight both the morning of and the evening of the planned departure for the Vernal Court, Serenades of the Snowdrop is a musical festival that takes place within the Hibernal Courtyard. Pavilions are raised, benches and chairs are arranged, and small daises are placed throughout the courtyard for performances to take place. Since music is a key element in maintaining the spirits of the winter-bound court, these recitals are a way to showcase the talents and development of the locals.

Vernal Court

Forming a large crescent structure that is entirely arboreal, the Vernal Court is located at the edges of the Darkling Wood where it meets the rolling plains that sprawl before the Northern Steppes. In the early days of the court, blended nature and stone magic was used to fuse ornately carved alabaster arches with the surrounding dark-barked trees. These arches and trees, called the Seven Pillars of Spring, provided the palace's support system and are connected via suspended highways to other trees. Ringed in wooden and alabaster platforms, these trees are called Home Trees and suspend orb-like domiciles that are three to four stories tall aloft. This ever-expanding and grandiose design creates a sprawling ivory and onyx palace that grows farther from the ground each year and requires constant maintenance. More than half the denizens of the Vernal Court are artisans that either maintain, rebuild, or expand the structure into the nearby woods.

• Court Colors – Hunter Green and Ivory
• Court Symbol – a branching ivory tree wreathed in seven stars upon a field of hunter green

The three ceremonies of the Vernal Court are Return of the Sharythian Hunters, Rains of Amelanchier, and Birth of Aquendilon.

When this court is opened, ivory gyrefalcons with hunter green ribbons trailing stars are sent to the various other courts within Ta'Ardenai and the other city-states.

Erenien'aethir: Return of the Sharythian Hunters

Forming a grand parade at dawn on the day of the Vernal Equinox, the Dawn Ceremony of the Vernal Court is a processional that starts three days before. An elegant tent city is constructed at the Springs of Winter Crossing, a beautiful natural waterfall that cascades down to the northern forests and hills to meet a hot spring. A full day is spent at the springs as a break from the long trek between the Hibernal and Vernal Courts, but it is also a time of hunting and trapping. Indeed, a great competition is held between the courtiers, nobles, and their retainers, and the seven best hunters are selected for the ceremony’s honors.

Seven elks are charmed, saddled, and with the hunters on their backs, lead the processional from the springs to the Vernal Court. Once at the court, each hunter departs to find homes within the arboreal city that have had a particularly hard winter, which are usually discreetly marked by the Vernal Governance, whereby they gift the fruits of their hunt to those households.

This ceremony began early in the founding of House Ardenai. It is rumored that Sharyth Ardenai's personal hunters, at great risk to themselves, weathered a terrible spring storm to bring food to those in great need. Sharyth, herself, is said to have forgone eating until everyone in the area had been given food.

Naira'aethir: Rains of Amelanchier

Preceded by a week-long local crafters’ festival, the Dusk Ceremony of the Vernal Court is an annual affair whose date and time fluctuate wildly by the weather and conditions of the season. It honors a local deciduous tree that grows in profusion throughout the area. Never growing large enough to become a Home Tree, the amelanchier tree is known by many names. Shadwood, sarvisberry, or sugarplum, to name a few, bloom in early spring and fill the forest with a sweet fragrance that is light, subtle, and incredibly enticing to pollinators. However, by mid-spring, the narrow-petalled blossoms begin to fall and blanket the ground with their white bodies, which is why the alternate name to Rains of Amelanchier is Snows of False Winter.

Trysts are common during the rains, which can take place for up to three days for a complete fall, as there is a contagious, energizing air of romance within the woods. Visitors, citizens, and governances of the Vernal Court all depart from their structures, homes, and farms during this time and head into the woods where the blossoms fall. Many nature classes are taught during this time as it is the height of spring and growth in the woods.

On the second day of the rains, several grand balls are held in small glades or dales where the trees are known to grow. Oftentimes, guests will visit multiple balls in a single evening, which is why the third day is always a resting day where everyone is encouraged to enjoy the quietude of their lives and reconnect with their families.

Veleriel'aethir: Birth of Aquendilon

Three days before the Summer Solstice, a grand feast is held at the Vernal Court to honor the famed Aquendilon. Lavish meals, boisterous songs, and energetic dances are performed at the feast which also doubles as a tradesmen’s meal. Livestock, textiles, and a variety of other products are sold for trade and then shipped down the Velaquin River to the coastal port of the same name where they are either put on ships to other cities and nations or are sent out to other parts of the city-state of Ta’Ardenai for distribution.

Who is Aquendilon? This depends on who you ask. If you speak to a northern, then Aquendilon is a mighty ox that used his horns to build the Springs of Winter Crossing. If you ask a southern, then it is an enormous stag who led starving hunters on a merry chase before laying himself down at their feet. In the east, he is a ptarmigan that guided the people from the beaches during a terrible winter storm and into the Echoes of Paldenephi Coast. To the west, the largest darkling rolton that ever existed who became a famed mount to one of the Sharythian Hunters. The legend of this is so lost that the truth may never be truly known, however, since most tales involve passage from one place to another, the excuse of his birth, which all Ardenai can agree on, provided the foundation for trade and travel festivities.

Estival Court

Though the third court of Ardenai, the Estival Court was the last constructed as years, and decades, were spent debating over the aesthetics and architecture that would be used for the complex. In that time, there was never a debate over where the structure would be built as the Echoes of Paldenephi were always a tourist location for those seeking summertime luxuries, and the surrounding plains were prime for cultivation and farming. Eventually, a design was settled upon and materials began to be imported from deeper in the city-state, as well as from the various other Elven Houses.

The resulting structure is a sprawling four-tiered palace, five if you include the ground floor, that sits on the western side of the Vyr'Glimaelys and overlooks the coastal waters. Within sight of outlooks, Lae'Rithani can be seen on the northeastern horizon, as can Vy'Velaquin to the southwestern. While the Estival Court and the Echoes of Paldenephi do not have ports of their own it is not unheard of for the ocean to be littered with vessels during the heights of summer. Borrowing the idea of Home Trees from the Vernal Court, the Estival Court has five Home Trees constructed of dolomite and alabaster carvings that were modeled after the silver birch. Open in the center, each tier resembles a halo that is held aloft by the trees’ limbs, while the enormous trunks are internally hollow to allow for stairs and lifts that provide access to each level. Built into the sides of each pillar-like structure are hundreds of trellises that from the second week of spring to the third week of autumn are teaming with vibrant painted ivy that ranges in hue from emerald to grass green, russet to carnelian orange, ruby to brick red, saffron to topaz yellow, and shades of brown.

Two looping bridges cross the Glimaelys where an additional pair of Home Trees sits. Barred doors, closed windows, and vacant rooms fill each of these two structures, though the grounds around them are teaming with plants and manicured lawns. One structure perches on the cliffs, its various limbs and gardens teaming with mournbloom, chrysanthemums, orchids, and the rare dianthus, while the other sits in the shadows of the first and is surrounded by burgundy dahlias, aconite, rhododendrons, and dark yellow roses. These structures are symbolic representations of the two lost houses, the river showing the rift between the five remaining houses and those of their lost cousins, with the waterfall that trails down the cliffs a symbol of the eternal sorrow of the Ardenai at the loss of their cousins.

• Court Colors – Topaz Yellow and Grass Green
• Court Symbol – a spiral column of white covered in topaz yellow ivy upon a grass green field.
  

Summer is a strange season for the Ardenai in that it brings a tumultuous amount of emotion, historical shame, and mourning. As such, much of the court's ceremonies are tinged by this undercurrent of reflection, remembrance, and retraction. Unlike other cultures that celebrate feats of strength, festivals of growth and learning during these months, the Ardenai remember their past and leave the autumn to celebrate those themes.

The three ceremonies of the Estival Court are The Diurnal Vanguard, Festival of the Split Sheaves of Phoenatos, and Banishment of the Mad King.

Selected for the green sheen to their feathers, grackles are tied with black ribbons and topaz yellow leaves before being sent to the various houses and courts of the elven nations.

Erenien'aethir: The Diurnal Vanguard

Half a day's travel from the Estival Court to the Vernal Court, the travelers rest in a tent city at the edges of the Darkling Wood and the Esthaen fields. During a time of reflection, all of the supplies and possessions of the traveling party are transferred to barges, which will be sent down the Glimaelys river to the court.

Seven elders are selected from the group and dressed in dark garb. These are the Diurnal Vanguard, those that banish the night from the lands and herald the equinox. They will ride to the Estival Court upon dark steeds as the rest of the travelers walk amongst them. Before reaching their summer home, two riders will separate from the group, one traveling east and one traveling west. These represent the departures of the Faendryl and Ashrim Houses from the Elven Nations.

A solemn banquet is provided within the court, which is illuminated by enormous bonfires and lofted magical globes that keep a daylight-like illumination for the six short hours of the night. Stories are shared during these hours of the darkness of the Battles of Maelshyve, various battles of the Age of Chaos, and the shame of the Horse Wars.

It is not unheard of to have funerary ballads, dirges, and hymnals played during this time.

Naira'aethir: Festival of the Split Sheaves of Phoenatos

Starting on the second weekend of Phoenatos, the Festival of Split Sheaves honors those lost during the five-year Blight by participating in five days of fasting, followed by the Feast of Abundance on the sixth day. Frequently, carefully guarded braziers are laid out in fields, streets, and highways, the large vessels burning sage, dandelion leaves, and ginger root. This combination of herbs is believed to stave off disease and lessen the feelings of hunger during these days.

Veleriel'aethir: Banishment of the Mad King

Towards the end of the Horse War, the popularity of the king of Ardenai was not only wildly unpopular with the people but was also openly ridiculed in public without fear or recourse. His own household members, legionnaires, and family openly shunned him. Eventually, he would be rumored to have died in an insane state, which garnered him the title the Mad King of Ardenai. So hated was he, that even his name is stricken from records and he is only referred to by his hated title.

During those times, one way to show displeasure was to take an indelible gourd that grew in tangled clumps along the edges of the Darkling Wood, hollow it out, and decorate it with a sinister expression. Small cornhusk and wheat stalk bodies were created and the gourd head was bound to the top. These ugly dolls were hung from balconies, eaves, and marketplaces as a show of defiance, but eventually over thousands of years since his rule, the custom has become something of a playful contest. Farmers compete to produce the ugliest gourd possible, the more wart-looking the better, children create scarecrows for the fields, and clothiers also get involved by creating garish fabrics for use in the festivities.

Autumnal Court

This final court of the Ardenai celebrates the coming end of year, honoring the changing leaves, the harvest reapers, and of course the Eve of Reunion.  Located several days' ride from the Estival Court, the Autumnal Court is located within the heart of the Ta’Ardenai city-state upon an island within the center of Vyr'Rithani.  Six sets of orangewood-inlaid bridges arc across waters that travel to the coasts, connecting the surrounding forest and fields to the island-bound court.

Only slightly smaller than the Hibernal Court, the Autumnal Court has a very different feel from the grandeur of the other courts.  Spread across five acres, the court is built upon a broad expanse of limestone that exploded from the ground during an earthquake sometime in the Age of Chaos.  This event split the Rithani river into three paths and became a place of reverence. Of note, while two of the paths follow natural contours and rejoin downstream, the third found a new path through the Darkling Wood. This small river is Vyr'Glimaelys.

Utilizing techniques gleaned from dwarven stonetenders, the Ardenai completely leveled the limestone into a flat terrain and used the chiseled pieces to create the buildings of the Autumnal Court.  Fourteen structures in total stretch across the island, each completely conical in shape. Though some of the structures are squat, the largest ones are three stories tall, and all structures have two entrances; one facing the central courtyard and one facing the river.

The Autumnal Courts uniqueness goes even further than its structures.  Where the Hibernal, Vernal, and Estival Courts all have a symbiotic relationship with nature, this court has an austere appearance at first glance. Perhaps because of its history or the fact that it was the first court built, the expanse of the island is a tribute to the stone.  Water sculptures, fountains, and stone gardens are encouraged within the court. They are encouraged so much so that this court frequently has the nickname of Water's Wake.

• Court Colors – Burnt Umber and Obsidian
• Court Symbol – a leafless ebonwood tree upon a field of burnt umber

The three ceremonies of the Autumnal Court are Scythes of the Widower, Harbinger of Reunion, and Crepuscule's Final Clutch.

At the start of this court's session, black-headed grossbeaks with ribbons of burnt umber tied with autumn leaves are sent to the various courts.

Erenien'aethir: Scythes of the Widower

In the early agrarian days of the Ardenai people, as settlements were being built and migration was coming to a close, there was one elf that taught generations of elves various harvesting skills. He would travel all across the city-state, teaching any that would listen all about the land that they were occupying. Distant rumors have it that he was sylvan, but no self-respecting Ardenai would admit to that. During one harvesting season, the love of his life passed away. So heartbroken was he at the loss of her that he began to wear only black, from head to toe. However, he never forgot his duty to the people and to the land, and so every year he continued to travel to all of the distant settlements, villages, and eventually cities as they sprang up.

In remembrance of Roheryaon Shaesthir, a grand harvest banquet is held upon the Autumnal Equinox in the outlaying fields of the court. Great feats of strength are displayed throughout the day, with special attention given to archery, horsemanship, and a variety of other skills. One particular contest is the Single Sheafing, whereby contestants must swing a scythe in a field of wheat. Whomever fells the most sheaves is the winner of the competition.

Under the blanket of dusk, Roheryaon makes an appearance at each banquet table and spends some time with the harvesters. He always sits at the head of the table and provides hard maple candies obtained from his travels to the local children.

• Its important to note that Roheryaon has long ago passed into twilight. It is believed that the Lord of the Autumnal Court plays the role of Roheryaon during these occasions, though no Lord has admitted to such in recent history. A small subset of Ardenai claim that Roheryaon is resurrected using forgotten -- or perhaps forbidden -- magics for this one night.

Naira'aethir: Harbinger of Reunion

During the latter half of the 39th century in the modern era, an accidental cross-pollination of the blue squash and the white gourd caused an explosion of slate blue-grey gourds with a bright orange interior to grow in large quantities. The exterior shell was hard, incredibly smooth, and lightly ribbed, however, the fruit within was utterly useless. Despite the efforts of the farmer and his family to produce something edible out of the bounty, the gourd became known as the Weedling, cropping up everywhere you wouldn't want it to grow and doing so in incredible abundance. Three years after the incident, the family almost closed their farm down and moved.

However, several forest gnomes from a nearby compound were completely enchanted with the gourds and crafted a separate name for them, The Ghost Gourds of Eve. They went to the farm one night and stole every gourd, much to the farmer and his family's relief, and brought them into the compound. From the first week of Jastatos to the third week, the gnomes carved, sculpted, fired, and crafted with the gourds producing fantastical lanterns, harvest boxes, and a wide variety of keepsakes and curios. In the week prior to the Eve of Reunion, the gnomes brought all of their new designs out to the local cemeteries, graveyards, and mausoleums. Candles were placed in the lanterns, candies were placed in the boxes, and the keepsakes were lacquered and set upon every plot within. The gourd's color was enhanced by the lacquer that the gnomes used on it, lending it a luminous quality that caused it to look like a will-o'-wisp at a distance. Elves that were coming to tidy and clean their ancestral plots found the work already done and the wonderful gourds instead of leaves and debris. When asked where the gourds came from, the cheerful gnomes informed them of the farm and within hours the farmer turned from near destitute to revered and praised.

As the years have advanced, the Harbinger of Reunion was born into a week-long festivity where ancestral burial sites are cleaned and decorated with the gourds. Contests are held for best designs, largest and smallest specimens, and there is even a contest for the best fire-hardened and sculpted bowls made out of the gourds.

Veleriel'aethir: Call of the Juniper

Kept in gardens, graveyards, and often potted, the juniper tree is held in high regard by the Ardenai people.  A central family tree is often clipped and given to children departing their homes for the first time.  This clipping is kept in the child's home in a potted urn as a reminder that family is important and that all life and love comes from an original source.

The juniper tree is unique in that it creates flowers for one year, which transform into hard green berries in the second year, eventually transitioning to frosted dark blue-purple berries that are finally ripe for consumption.  Given its unique cycle, the Ardenai have several superstitions and sayings tied to the blue-green vegetation.  Should the clipping of a juniper tree not take root, then it is believed that the child is not ready to be on their own, and they will frequently return for "One Cycle of the Juniper."  It is considered superstitious for a child to leave their family during the "Blooming Cycle," and indeed only encouraged during the "Ripened Phase" when the berries mature into their frosted color. During the "Growth Cycle," there is a superstition that no major changes should be made. Indeed, a common excuse to avoid change is "The berry is in growth," which means that the family's juniper has berries in their growing phase. However, since the family's juniper tree is usually prominently displayed, either in large urns in front of windows, on porches, or in yards, the excuse can easily be discovered as a lie and is thus used sparingly.

The phrase, "When Autumn brushes Winter," refers to the best time to harvest juniper.  There are other phrases that reference this time, such as "Before the Nightjar becomes a thief" or "Else the Squirrel learns to drink." These are all idioms referencing that the harvest of the juniper needs to happen before the animals of the forest get to the berries first.  Because the juniper berry isn’t a true berry, but more a cone, it makes a great storage food for hibernating animals, which has led to the popular child’s game of "Poorwill and the Berries."  The game involves keeping a "poorwill," which is a hibernating bird, from the ripe "berries" of the juniper tree.

During the final week of Eoantos, there is one of the largest modern-day migrations of the Ardenai people that is still observed.  Known as the Call of the Juniper, families reunite for a weekend of memory, rejoicing, and well-wishing before heading back to their homes for Solstice gatherings. This week is very much about family-of-the-blood and not family-of-the-spirt or heart.

Etiquette requires that when the family's original juniper tree is in the "Blossoming Cycle" that everyone returns to that tree.  Indeed, there is even protocol for this reunion if two families have a blossoming tree in the same year. In this case, you would attend to the "mother's" side of the family.  While the tree is in its "Growth Cycle," family returns to the "father's" side of the family, and when the tree is in the "Ripening Phase," the family descends upon the "child’s" household.

In modern Ardenai, these protocols have been expanded to honor the multiple compositions that households can take. These compositional changes are a lingering result of the Great Plague which caused many households to adopt and merge and allows for unions that have evolved beyond opposing gender.  There is even a complex hierarchy that each family follows as many households are multigenerational.

A common farewell among family members is "Until the Juniper Blooms" which roughly means that you will meet again before three years have passed.

Ceremonies by Type

Erenien'aethir (Dawn Ceremonies) of the Ardenai

• Heralds of the Long Dark - Moonrise on the Winter Solstice
• Return of the Sharythian Hunters - Dawn on the Vernal Equinox
• Diurnal Vanguards - Day of Summer Solstice
• Scythes of the Widower - Evening of the Autumnal Equinox

Naira'aethir (Dusk Ceremonies) of the Ardenai

• Stormriders of the Creeping Frost - 45th Day of Winter
• Rains of Amelanchier - 40th - 50th Day of Spring (depending on season)
• Festival of the Split Sheaves - 2nd week of Phoanatos
• Harbingers of Reunion - 24th Day of Jastatos through the Eve of Reunion

Veleriel'aethir (Twilight Ceremonies) of the Ardenai

• Serenades of the Snowdrop - 85th Day of Winter
• Birth of Aquendilon - Three days before the Summer Solstice
• Banishment of the Mad King - 1st week of Imaeresta
• Call of the Juniper - Final full week of Eoantos