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Lilith’s 14th birthday had been a quiet affair. She’d stayed in to celebrate it with just her mother, father and Eda - and a few aunts and uncles sent letters from other body parts of the Titan. Lilith didn’t mind; she didn’t have any friends from school to invite, nor did Eda, and fourteen was hardly an important age.
Well, it was important for one reason, but Lilith was trying to be patient.
A couple of weeks after her birthday, there was a knock on the door of her room. When Lilith opened the door, her father was waiting for her with a smile. “Hello, witchlet. Are you busy?”
“Um, no,” Lilith replied, glancing back at the various notes scattered across her desk. It was late in the evening, and she was trying to cram in some extra studying before bed. ‘Nerd behaviour’, Eda would call it. “Why? Is there something you need?”
Her father gave her a warm smile. “Come with me.”
Lilith held her breath, trying not to let the excitement overwhelm her as she realised they were heading to her father’s workroom. She urged herself to calm down. There could be any number of reasons why her father was leading her there, he’d been showing her and Eda his wood carvings since they were little-
The door to the workroom swung open, and Lilith gasped as she saw a log of palistrom wood sitting atop the workbench.
“Dad!” she exclaimed, and he gave her a grin.
“You’re at the right age, are you not?” he replied. “I’ve been saving this for you since you were a newborn. Come, look closer.”
The wood was gorgeous - Lilith had never seen palistrom wood in its entirely natural state before, despite how many hundreds of her father’s carvings she must have gazed at already in her short life. Hesitantly, she raised a hand to touch it, and after a nod from her father, laid her hand across the wood.
“Wow,” she whispered, unsure of what to say. “Are you sure I’m ready?”
“Of course!” her father replied. “You’re fourteen. Unless… you don’t think you are?”
“No, I…” Lilith frowned. She wanted to carve her palisman, she’d been excited about this day for years, but… “I’m still not sure what to carve, exactly. A bird, obviously, and I have an idea in my head, but it’s more of a concept than a solid form, and I think I’d mess it up if I don’t know exactly what they’re going to look like-”
Her father placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “That’s where I come in. I can help you with the technical aspects, so you can focus on the emotion and bringing that concept in your head to life.”
“That sounds almost too easy,” Lilith said hesitantly.
“Well, you are in a clan of palisman carvers, so this will probably be easier for you than it is for other young witches,” her father laughed. “But there’s no reason for you to worry. Most witches don’t know exactly what their palisman will look like when they start to carve, either. But they have a way of just knowing exactly what’s in your heart.”
Lilith paused, brushing her hand over the surface of the palistrom wood once more. “Okay. I think I am ready, then.”
Her father grinned, reaching to pull out his tools from a nearby draw. “In that case, let’s get started.”
A night of carving later, and the palisman was almost finished.
“All I need to do is add the varnish, and then we’ll leave it for a day to dry. After that, your palisman should come to life.” Her father looked down at the workbench, admiring their shared creation. “I have to say, they look quite formidable.”
Lilith agreed. The palisman of a witch in the Emperor’s Coven had to be fierce enough to warn any witch looking to challenge her of her strength. She had carved out strong lines, a slender head, and a large wingspan, but had held back on adding too many details. She knew palismen assumed some of the details of their appearance when they came to life - and as such, she’d left most of the decision-making to them. It sent a thrill through her, knowing that although she had carved her palisman, the real excitement of the experience was still ahead.
Her father kissed the top of her head. “Get a good night's sleep, witchlet. They’ll be waiting for you when you get back from school tomorrow.”
Despite her father’s words, Lilith barely slept a wink, too busy almost vibrating with anticipation.
Lilith skipped home as fast as possible after school, to the point where Eda was the one who had to catch up with her, for once. “I’m home!” she yelled briefly to her mother, before racing to her father’s workroom.
Her father was already inside, and gave her a knowing smile. “I think they’re ready.”
Lilith squeaked, rushing over to the workbench. The palisman looked the same as they did when she had left them yesterday, but as she hovered over them, they began to change. First, their eyes lit up brilliant blue, and their wings expanded to reveal a magnificent wingspan.
“Oh my,” her father remarked, “that’s quite the fighting companion you’ve got there, witchlet.”
Lilith nodded without taking her eyes off the palisman, eagerly awaiting the next part of their transformation.
Their wings were gaining a fluffy volume, and claws were beginning to be defined. A sharp beak extended from the point Lilith had carved into the wood, and the blue shine to their eyes was subsiding.
Then, the palisman blinked, stretched out their wings, and looked up at Lilith with wide, friendly eyes.
“Well, they certainly are less intimidating now they’ve come to life!” her father laughed, before patting Lilith on the shoulder. “What do you think?”
The palisman - her palisman - hopped forward and chirped, cocking their head to the side as if awaiting a response. They were… adorable. Lilith couldn’t quite understand what they were saying yet, but she smiled anyway, addressing her palisman. “I… I don’t even know what to say. You’re almost the opposite of what I carved!”
Her palisman squawked, as if in indignation. Lilith grinned. “That’s not a bad thing. Don’t worry.” She held her hands out, and her palisman hopped into her palm. She lifted them to her shoulder, the same way she’d seen her father do with his palisman hundreds of times.
Her father, for his part, was looking down at her with a fond grin. “Well, like I said - palisme n have a way of knowing what’s in your heart. I’ll leave you two to bond.” With that, he exited the room, leaving Lilith and her palisman alone.
Her palisman nuzzled against her shoulder, and Lilith reached up to stroke a soothing hand along their back. “I love you already,” she whispered, and received another chirp in reply.
That one had been almost understandable. “Did you say I can come up with a name for you?” Lilith asked, and her palisman chirped again. “Don’t put me on the spot like that! I’ll take my time, and think of a good one.”
A happy chirp was what she got in response to that, and Lilith laughed, the sound spilling out of her. “Yes, I promise. It’ll be the coolest name in the world.”