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- "The High Aldwyn gave them to me. He was a true wizard, the shaman of our vale. Didn't mean anything for him, either, but they looked impressive when he needed to buttress some pronouncement or other."
- —Willow Ufgood, in Shadow Moon
The Bones were a set of bone fragments that High Aldwin Junn kept in a small leather pouch. When the Nelwyns were faced with a difficult question, Junn would shake the pouch to the four cardinal points, and then he bent and scatter the bone fragments. Allegedly, the Bones had oracular properties, and the High Aldwin could answer delicate questions by considering the significance of their alignment.[3] In truth, the bones had no divinatory powers at all, and Junn only used them to buttress his opinions by giving them a supernatural aura.[2]
When the inhabitants of Willow Ufgood's village wanted to abandon Elora Danan, the High Aldwin sensed there was something special about that lost Daikini baby girl, and he also knew that leaving her to die would be cruel. He then pretended to consult the divinatory bones and discreetly asked Ufgood if he had any love for the child. Upon hearing Ufgood's affirmative answer, the High Aldwin announced that the Bones had spoken, asserting that Elora Danan should be taken back to the Daikini lands. As expected, the villagers praised the Bones and agreed to act as instructed by the so-called oracle.[1]
Some time later, Ufgood came back from a long quest that had ended with the fall of Demon Queen Bavmorda.[1] Junn entrusted the new Nelwyn hero with Bones.[2]
Appearances
- Willow (First appearance)
- Willow: A Novel
- Shadow Moon