First Sleep

First Sleep is a very important coming of age ceremony among the elves of the Luenlani, Dwedani, and Zaari. It's very bad form to treat an underage individual as a valid political target, so First Sleep marks when an individual is considered mature enough to formally join The Game. An individual cannot marry or enter into any kind of binding contract before their First Sleep ceremony.
First Sleep ceremonies are considered excellent opportunities to forge new alliances, test old ones, network, and, of course, assassinate rivals. Or pesky spouses.

Execution

The ceremony is usually arranged by the individual's mother or matriarch. The scope and location of the event is dependent on their arrangements, but it is generally in at least a semi-public space such as a ceremonial circle, city hall, or other large gathering place - so long as it is nowhere near a temple with a tree of life, or - most especially - nowhere near a grove of trees of life. 
The day of the ceremony is marked by a large party that should include all significant family members, and invitations for any politically significant individuals in their circles. Being left off of the invitation list is considered a deliberate snub. Gifts are expected, as First Sleep signifies that the individual is beginning their independent life as an adult, and thus similarly a paltry gift will be taken note of.
During the first portion of the day, all ages in the families are welcome to take part in the celebrations. This time is marked by the presence of any local paladins, who ensure that First Sleep expectations are adhered to. Somewhere in the midafternoon, at the matriarch's discretion, the paladins will take charge of any underage individuals and safeguard them at a local temple, and all bodyguards are required to leave the event.
This marks when The Sleepover begins.
At this time, an audacious assassin might attempt to slip a target a slow acting poison, but the wise refrain until the ceremony is complete. One never knows if a matriarch might give an overlong speech, or if the family decides to include an additional musical performance, which might cause one's target to (very rudely) die before the honoree.
The main event is, of course, the First Sleep ceremony itself. The honoree is seated at a prepared altar and is administered doses of Sweet Sleep, one square at a time, by the officiant. This is traditionally accompanied by music and/or a significant family member giving a speech. The music is used as an easy metric to mark time, to ensure that doses of Sweet Sleep are taken at regular intervals, until the honoree reaches their tolerance limit, at which time they are allowed to pass away.
It is considered polite to wait until the formal closing of the ceremony (which consists of laying out the honoree in state, often with flowers and symbols of life and rebirth), but in practice the moment the honoree has passed, the party becomes an open field for assassinations.
For the rest of the night, until the stroke of midnight, The Game is in full swing, and may the survivors reap the rewards. 
If the family has any kind of standing or resources, they will have events planned that allow for the best challenges, such as hedge mazes, a ball, a formal dinner, or a visit to the nearest haunted forest (all in the name of good fun, of course). The higher the bodycount by the end of the evening, the higher the acclaim for the hosting family. Particularly if the family are the only survivors.
At midnight, the bodies are collected and laid out in a designated area near the honoree. If any significant number of guests are left alive they may opt to continue to stay up until dawn, negotiating contracts or discussing politics. Some may choose to retire from the event to their own beds, or wherever they're lodging for the event. It is considered very rude to assassinate a guest after midnight during this informal withdrawing time.
The next dawn, when everyone returns to life, is considered to be the close of First Sleep, but it has become a practice to hold a second celebration in the morning before the event finally breaks up and everyone returns to their homes.

Components and tools

The most important element for the ceremony itself is the Sweet Sleep. Traditionally it is comprised of chocolate and dawnbringer, but the chocolate may be substituted for something else if the individual is allergic. (One should not taint one's First Sleep ceremony with anything so unfortunate as anaphylaxis). 
Dawnbringer is a common poison extracted from dawnflowers, which is grown in most elven gardens. When prepared properly and administered in appropriate doses, it induces a painless unconsciousness followed by death. Chocolate is used not only because its taste covers that of the dawnbringer, but also because its chemical components do not alter or lessen dawnbringer's effects. 
The chocolate is melted and mixed with a carefully measured amount of dawnbringer. The mix is then poured into molded squares that are exactly the same size, and then allowed to cool. Sweet Sleep should be made only by an experienced assassin who can ensure that each square contains precisely the same dose of dawnbringer, for the most accurate assessment of tolerance. It can usually be procured from the local representatives from the Redguard, even if one is not a politically significant individual. It is considered too important to be left to the inexperienced.
Meddling with the Sweet Sleep (such as adding spices as a prank) is severely frowned upon and could carry repercussions.

Participants

Besides the honoree who is coming of age, First Sleep should be attended by one's matriarch, one's mother and one's sire (even if they are not necessarily bound by marriage rites anymore), any other immediate family members who haven't fallen out of favor, and, of course, the family assassin. 
The ceremony should be officiated by the family assassin, but if one's family is so insignificant that they cannot afford a family assassin, they may contract a member of the local assassins' guild. A moderately wealthy household might even scrape together the resources to contract a Redguard for one night, since First Sleep is such a significant event in one's life.

Observance

First Sleep traditionally takes place on or soon after an individual's thirty third birthday.

Important Locations

• Dweda Zaara
• Luenlan

Related Organizations

• The Redguard

Related Ethnicities

• Dwedani
• Luenlani
• Zaari