The Onset was the first tiny step; the big clodhopper is the Chrysalis, or the Dream Dance. The changeling makes his first, conscious realization of self. The last elements of his prior mundane world are stripped away as the changeling reveals himself. The transformation is quite dramatic; only the most banal of humans fail to notice that something weird is going on. A changeling undergoing Chrysalis fully per- ceives the Dreaming for the first time. The shock of realization
creates a temporary bridge between the changeling and the Near Dreaming. Some seers suggest that a Chrysalid change- ling near a trod could actually act as a "slingshot" to propel a user of Dream-Craft very close to Arcadia. It's an interesting theory — there have been cases of mortals and fae slipping into the Near Dreaming during a Chrysalis, but the few foolish seers who attempted to use a Chrysalid to launch themselves were never heard from again — in or out of the Dreaming.
The circuit between the changeling and the Dreaming is two-way, however: chimera who were strangely attracted to the changeling, as well as nervosa of the changeling's own making, can show up to this powerful event. The Banality of all people in the immediate area is lowered. During special cyclical occurrences (full moons, Kithain holidays or astro- logical events), the Banality can be even lower, and chimera may run wild in the streets. It is said that Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans and Paris are often accompanied by changelings undergoing Chrysalis.
The Chrysalis affects physical surroundings as well. Generally, the setting of the event tends to conform to the equivalent locale of the Near Dreaming, but this isn't always the case. The state of mind of the changeling in Chrysalis is important. A Chrysalid who spent her life as an "Army brat," shunted from base to base, might re-invent her surroundings as a bunch of closely ordered, featureless, wood buildings with wild swathes of red, white and blue patterns floating in the air. An advertising executive may suddenly conjure up several large, nightmarishly elongated Marlboro Men with atten- dant horses, prairie and rows of giant vertical cigarettes. Dream Dances do not have to be so literal. The possibilities are endless: grasshoppers with human heads, tiny killer cars, or anything else in or out of the imagination.
Regardless of the form it takes, the Dream Dance is immediately preceded by a psychic "wave" of Glamour, washing ovr everything and everyone. The intrepid members of the Order must act quickly, for pandemonium will run riot after the wave is felt. The last thing you want to do to a Dream Dancer is touch or alarm her in any way. A careful, cautious approach is necessary. Anything that alarms the Dream Dancer could set off an avalanche of Glamour. Kind words and quiet assurances of your wish to help is the best way to communicate with a Kithain in Chrysalis.
Finally, and most important—be wary of using cantrips. Glamour runs riot during this time, and the changeling in Chrysalis often will cast uncontrolled cantrips well beyond her power under normal circumstances. Even your own Cantrips may go haywire, refuse to function or turn against you!
The Dream Dance abates the moment the changeling accepts her identity and calms down. At this point, she can assist in the control of her own created chimera (and if she doesn't, it may well suggest that she is Unseelie), and things
start to settle down. Okay, folks, break it up; Mardi Gras is over, go back to sleep — which is what usually happens. The Burgesses run home, lock the doors, hide in their beds or closets, and by the morning, the Mists fog their brains, and they have forgotten all of last night's chaos.
Fostering
If all went well and the Kithain is brought to a freehold alive, she is brought before the ruling lord, who hears the evidence of her kith from witnesses. It is usually a short meeting, because a Chrysalis is pretty hard to fake. Now, there was a crazy magician who tried once, and he even fooled the noble, but his insanity betrayed him, and the fae threw him out with a few nasty cantrips for good measure. Still, he had to know an awful lot about Kithain society to pull off such a clever deception.
Once the lord makes his ruling, he determines the "guardian" best for the fledge. Admittedly, this decision is often subject to the whim of the lord, and sometimes is decidedly reune (well before the meeting even began). There are unfortunate tales of guardians saddled with fledges as a form of power-play or humility lesson on the new guardian. On the other hand, a lord could gift a promising young fledge to a guardian as a means of expressing favor.
In such cases, the fledge-guardian relationship is often not a good one. Resentment can build between two parties if a hidden agenda forced them together. How do you think it would feel, for example, to be forced to be a mentor? What goes on in a fledge's mind when he finds out that his guardian was handed him as a form of punishment? I've also seen fledges act spoiled as tomatoes if they find out that they were a "gift" bestowed upon the guardian — "You better treat me nicely, or I'll tell the whole court how you mistreat your prize fledge."
Commoner fledges often do not play this type of game, because most do not have the power. A fledge is given to a guardian, the guardian teaches the fledge the basics of sur- vival — end of story. In the past, nobles used to name guardians for both commoner and noble fledges. This is no longer the case. Many motley groups do not take a new-found fledge to a noble freehold, preferring to protect and teach the young fledge themselves.
The guardian acts as mentor and a sort of older sibling to the fledge. Even though the fledge is considered a part of the family and may inherit the guardian's property, the individu- ality of the fledge is respected. Fledge and guardian may even end up in different Courts.
With grump fledges, the situation is slightly different. Grumps have a bit more maturity under their belts and are allowed more freedom of movement. They do not need to be mollycoddled and suckled like you youngsters—sit down, Bodi!
Saining
After a waiting period of watchful guardianship - traditionally a year and a day — the fletch is Sained, or named. Before the Saining, a fletch is fae and has all the distinguishing characteristics of Kithain (physical features, cantrips, etc.), but a True Name is necessary for the fae to grow as a changeling. A Kithain without his True Name has lost himself. Stuck in his level of growth and unable to progress (i.e., no more experience), a fae who has lost his True Name — due to a malefic namer, stupidity or a broken oath — is a sad thing. At this point, the changeling could under- take a quest to regain his True Name, or be "re-named" (Level Five Naming, see Chapter Five) by a powerful seer.
Traditionally, a court seer performed the Saining ritual after a year and a day (sidhe Saining rituals still follow this custom). A few commoners are familiar with the Naming Art and have undertaken this ritual themselves. However, since their return, the sidhe have tried to keep this Art within their hounds. Personally, I don't see why — the commoners have just as much right to it as they. When the sidhe were forced off this plane, most of the seers went with them. Someone had to Sain the new arrivals. I don't see why so many nobles bellyache about this.... Yes, Bodi, you can tell anyone you like that I said so! And by the way, how would you like to spend the rest of your life as a pig pooka? Oh, you don't think I can do that, hmm? Keep riding me, boy, and they'll start calling you "Porky." The Kithain who use the Naming Art refer to themselves as namers, to delineate themselves from the noble's seers.
A noble sidhe's Saining, includes the Fior-Reigh — a test of valor and bravery — to determine her worthiness
among the sidhe, and what House she belongs to. There are many different tests, subject to the whim of the ruling nobles. Many of these tests takes the form of a geas of some sort.