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by Ongaku no Ryoko » Wed May 20, 2020 10:43 am
The Takemori tribe is a nomadic one - wandering from lands that, in another history, would belong to the Yogo in the west, all the way through the suzume valley, and past, near the coast to the east. Their nomadic nature, moving their herds from place to place, has led to them adopting well built and decorated storage wagons as their primary constructions, holding most everything of value and forming impromptu fortifications when circled at a camping site. Individuals and families live in well adorned tent structures, which can be assembled and packed quickly, to allow for the tribe to relocate every few months when the pastures grow thin and need to regrow.
This mobile nature has made them an individualistic and proud tribe, relying heavily on their herds for wool, meat, bones, and leather, along with wood gathered along the edge of the shinomen forest during their west-most travels. Because of this, they tend away from complex metal tools, only acquiring such hard metals from trade, and otherwise using decorated wooden tonfa to guide and protect their flocks. Clothes are woven in decorative patterns, from fiber or wool, and jewelry and other ornaments are crafted from small bits of copper and stone. The Tribal arts are largely performative - with lasting creations mostly consisting of decoration upon wagon, instrument, or clothing, and no written records kept.
Names: Takemori tribes-people will carry a variety of names, drawing as they do from villages and travelers who may have chosen to stay and marry into the tribe. That said, all will take the Takemori tribe name, along with the undergoing the ritual of membership, unless they are Ongaku.
The second 'family' of the tribe, the Ongaku, are the ritual performers. Any children who are not claimed by the parents, either because they are born of an incautious fling by an unwed individual, or because one parent does not wish to remain with the caravan, is taken by the tribe and made Ongaku. These children are then raised as one apart, tasked with learning and performing the many songs and dances of the tribe history - bringing lively energy to festivals and bringing blessings from the earth with exemplary performance. They are respected, but also isolated - forbidden from taking a spouse within the tribe, so as to avoid any family gaining undue influence over their sacred work.
Oaths, and Oath Breaking: The Takemori are a people bound purely by oral contract. Without written records or confirmation of any dealings, reputation is critical to maintaining trust between caravan families and villages with whom they do business. The reputation of an individual is held in high regard, and the twin crimes of oath breaking and defamation are viewed as reprehensible. Staining your own reputation by failing to live up to your promises will often lead to the tribe divesting you of authority, tasking you with menial and unimportant matters until you can prove yourself worthy of returning to regular life. In turn, falsely impugning the reputation of another is viewed as worse - this crime often carries the cost of public lashing or even exile - for who could trust someone who does not give a fair accounting when speaking of others? They sow distrust and uncertainty, not just about themselves, but about all with whom they do business.
Marriage: Because the Takemori are a people bound purely by oral contract, marriage is regarded as a very sacred rite. If one is to be trusted, they must be able to keep their pledge to those they love, first and foremost of all. Accordingly, not all Takemori who start families together choose to marry, indeed many do not, but those that do are making a public declaration of their trustworthiness, and are expected to remain extremely faithful to their spouse. Adultery is often punished like other oath-breaking, by stripping an individual of any esteem or social position they hold, leaving them only the least important and inconsequential tasks, so that their treachery cannot threaten the good of the tribe. Recovering from this status is arduous, often requiring years of effort and reliable labor for the good of the caravan, along with the agreement of their spouse.
Children born to two parents within the tribe are Takemori by name, to be raised by those parents - only those who are born of adultery or a dalliance with an outsider who refuses to join the caravan are made Ongaku. In rare cases, if there is a shortage of such children, Ongaku may be allowed to wed one another, but such an event is rare.
The Rites: Almost every truly important moment in Takemori life has some sort of song, dance, or festival. Marriages are day long affairs, wild and full of music and dancing, as are the festivals which mark the turning seasons, funerals, and birth celebrations. Takemori believe a single great deity made everything, before falling into a deep sleep, leaving the world in the hands of many caretaker spirits, and they will often offer songs or dances to please them, before taking a new camp site to remain for a few months. They hope enough of their songs will pass through those caretakers to eventually wake the great deity. Even smaller events, such as formal contracts, departing a camp site, or ritual fight to solve a dispute will often have an Ongaku present, playing a truthsong, or a binding melody to underscore the proceedings.
Ogres: Ever since joining the tribe, the Ogres have formed a second caravan, which follows the human one, so that none of the local villages they pass are unprepared for their coming. Standoffish and disdainful by nature, those ogres who stayed among the tribe have grown to enjoy human company - fleeting though it may be, and often serve as sages and judges, resolving human disputes or offering wisdom from generations past. Some take human spouses, and stay with them until eventually time, and human mortality, separate them. After the loss of a spouse, often an ogre will return to the second caravan for a season or two to grieve, avoiding human company.
They keep tribes of goats, following harsher paths than the human caravans, wandering in wilder places, and some seasons they travel far from the usual circuit, seeking solace in wild places where humans are yet to settle, but they often return a few months later as if nothing unusual had happened.
Death: Upon death, a Takemori is given a parting festival - a short but fierce song declaring their name and deeds to the spirits, so that they will be returned to the maker with a good report - that way the new spirit will be given a good home and place in the next life as a caretaker. Then the body is wrapped, bound, and burned, so that the spirit is not tempted to try and come back - but instead is free to go on with no regrets.
Takemori :: Master of Ceremonies :: Voice :: Horned Girl :: Music Lover :: Jealous
Status: 1.0
Reputation: 3.5
Glory: 2.0
Resources: Twin Tonfa, Dai-Tsuchi, Morin Khuuru, Jade-Flower Glove, Tago the drummer.
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