Yarnrush

A yarnrush is a mythological species of bird that are said to have belonged to the Hubraic Era-deity, the Weaver. Many of the stories from the Hubraic Era claimed that she maintained large flocks of these birds that, when flying together in a murmuration, caused the weaving of certain parts of the Weave of Time.

Description

The yarnrush does not have the voice of any mortal bird. It sings with the voice of a thousand human hopes, dreams, anxieties and nightmares simultaneously coming to fruition or failing, echoing across the threads of Time for all eternity.

— From the writings of Hubraic scholar, Dana Swanhild

A Yarnrush via Bing by Caitlin Wright

Yarnrushes were considered to be small and colourful birds, roughly the same size as a chaffinch (14.5cm or 5.7inches long) and a wingspan ranging from between 24.5–29cm when flying in the mortal realm, to the width of infinity when traversing the Weave of Time itself.
Scholars of Hubraic Era theology and folklore vehmently disagree on the appearance of yarnrushes. Some believe that, as a bird, the swalrush had feathers just like mortal birds; others point to the etymology of their names to suggest that they were made of yarn or a similar, mythical, thread-

like material. The latter is a theory supported by Sevastian Kaen, a post-doctoral student in Folklore Studies at the Universität of Rykfontein. He has collected several images of the Weaver interacting with yarnrushes, but the most unique depicts the Weaver in the act of physically creating the bird, using a technique similar to modern-day embroidery.

Threads of the Weave

Every twisting turn, every glorious dive, every joyous soar - the flight of the yanrush is the dance of fate itself.

— A quote from a Hubraic Era scholar

Scholars and folklorists disagree about the purpose of the yarnrush. Some sources claim that they were simply the Weaver's pets; others claim that they were an instrument of weaving the pattern of time itself. A number number of existing Hubraic writing does suggest that perhaps the yarnrush was simply a metaphore for the wild, unpredictable flow of life. More often that not, yarnrushes are described flying across the Weave of Time, using its patterns in the same way mortal birds might traverse wind currents and updrafts.

A Murmuration of Yarnrushes via Bing by Caitlin Wright

Please note: This article is a rough draft created for Summer Camp 2023

by Amirali Mirhashemian

The Weaver Creating a Yarnrush via Bing by Caitlin Wright

Modern Depictions

The best laid plans of the Weaver are quickly unpicked by the yarnrush's beak.

— Saeric Proverb

The identity of the Weaver was a fiercely debated topic, even in the Hubraic Era. To some, she was the trapped Soul of beautiful woman, tricked into servitude by an evil fae; in other tales, she was a goddess who was concerned only in capturing the pattern of time in her beautiful tapestry. Those who take this latter view also tend to believe that the Weaver was murdered by the Raven's servants duing the Hubraic Wars. If that is so, the question arises: what happened to her managery?
In the modern Saeric age, the yarnrush is seen as a mischevious pest. No longer cared for by their mistress, it is believed that yarnrushes fly through the Weave of Time, unpicking threads to build their nests. Unforeseen misfortune in a person's life is often attributed to the meddling of these mythological birds.