Sweetgrass Voice
Legacy Name: Sweetgrass Voice

Long long ago there were not yet tribes of Hyenas roaming the plains. Instead there was just one pair and they were considered gods. She-Is and He-Is were the first of their kind and equal in strength, cunning, and bravery. She-Is and He-Is were perfectly matched in every way and thus brought harmony to the world. They went on many adventures and have many stories told about them, but this is perhaps the most important. For one day He-Is noticed She-Is was not as quick on her feet and could not fight as fiercely as he did. He-Is, confused, asked his mate about this revelation.

"She-Is is pregnant." was the reply, a paw briefly touching her belly. Joy lit He-Is' face at this answer, happy thoughts surfacing in his mind of starting a family. He had seem them of course in his travels but never thought to have one of his own.

Time passed quickly and with every passing week She-Is slowed down even more. She could not turn as fast nor stalk as long before tiring. He-Is was taken back by this, for they were no longer equal. He-Is could beat She-Is in a fight he had no doubt. She-Is would fight fiercely for sure but not as fierce as she once would. The thought startled him for he loved his mate and would never harm her.

He pushed the thought aside and life continued. However the thought would come snaking back unbidden into his mind, coiling around and tickling at the edges like a whispered voice.

"She-Is, there is voice I do not want in my head." he confessed to She-Is one afternoon. "It smells like Sweetgrass and talks as smooth."

"And what does this Sweetgrass Voice say, dear love?" replied She-Is, her face turned to the warmth of the sun.

"I am not sure what to make of it yet." he confessed. And that was the end of the conversation.

Months passed.

"You can take her. It would be easy. You would be He-Is-Fighter, bravest amongst all peoples. He-Is-First, He-Is-King. Just one bite, He-Is-God" whispered the Sweetgrass Voice constantly. She-Is grew heavy with her unborn whelp and He-Is had more and more thoughts about challenging her. It was starting to drive him mad. The voice never stopped whispering unbidden in his ear and he watched She-Is with a hunters eye marking her growing weakness.

She-Is realized that He-Is was not himself. She noticed the hungry stares and mad look in his eye but did not take it to heart. He-Is and She-Is were mates, he would never harm her.

She-Is was wrong.

The voice was a constant companion now, soothing and alarming all at once. Finally one dawn, after a night of Sweetgrass Voice mewling in his ear, he snapped.

"SHE-IS!" he yelled. "I challenge you to rights to be called Fiercer! You are no longer my match and we are not equal. We should not be named as equals!"

She-Is grew angry and snarled at He-Is, flicking her tail and standing tall. "Cease this folly, He-Is. We are equal, you can not best me."

Her confidence didn't shake He-is and he lashed out at his mate, latching on and shaking her ruff fiercely. He would win, he would be crowned He-Is-First. The fight escalated from there, running across mountains and parting seas in its wake. The fight is what caused the great canyon to the west, where He-Is tripped and fell heavily. The battle lasted for two weeks and not a minute more, for that was when the pup was due.

She-Is howled out suddenly in pain and backed from the fight. Maddened as he was, even He-Is would not trouble a birthing mother. The labor was arduous and awful to witness, the pup having suffered from the injuries and efforts of the battle. At long last the pup lay in the grass, no moving and She-Is could hear no breath coming from his still form. She-Is eyed He-Is with death in her eyes and fought more fiercely then ever before.

"From now on I am known as She-Is-Fiercer, warrior amongst our people. He-Is is no more, you shall be known as Nameless now. Begone, Nameless and live in exile!" She-is-Fiercer bellowed across the mountains. The world shuddered at her voice and the once proud He-Is shrank back in shame. Sweetgrass Voice yelled in his head to go back and fight She-Is-Fiercer but Nameless shook his head in shame and ran. He would cower in the darkest cave he could find, growing madder as time when on for Sweetgrass Voice never left him.

"It is okay to open your eyes, their story is over young children. The story of She-Is-Fiercer and He-Is is as old as our people and teaches a very important lesson. Can anyone tell me what that is? Go on now, raise your paws, don't be shy."