Silver Moraine Kaittuk

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Set around four hours after this thread.

The time necessary to ensure that there lingered no longer the scent of the wetlands had been far greater of a period than she’d previously expected, but, at last, she could smell it no longer. With the odour gone and her body having long since been cleansed of any physical reminders, the memory of the earth squelching beneath her paws had begun fading away. Knowing that she would be marked not in any way by the sloppy earth left a pleasant feeling in the back of her mind, unable to be disrupted by anything; even after seeing the rocky terrain that she was then meant to travel over, she’d not faltered. If ever she was forced to choose between rocks or mud underfoot, the former would be her selection of poison, hands down. Little of her time had been spent on a mountain, and she would never say any differently, but the fact that she’d been born into a mountainous pack had encouraged her to become comfortable with even the roughest of grounds—that, and because she’d always been drawn towards the art of hunting, which often required individuals to trek across various sorts of rocky and icy regions.

Drawing in a breath, Chulyin paused and glanced around, scanning her surrounding areas. She pushed her ears forward whilst keeping her tail even with her back, never unprepared to stand her ground, should she ever have to. Several times after angling her nose against the traveling winds the girl inhaled, drawing in deep breaths and, with them, scents. The strongest to be detected was that of wolves, a discovery that then led to her fur raising up along her back. Shaking her head, the Inuk pointed her nose back down so that she could stare up ahead at where her path was leading her and continued on her way with a moderate stride.

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Rampant curses broke the monotony of the whistling, cutting wind one cold winter morning. Old Negiliq had done everything in her power to escape the frost of Alaska, and still, down south she hand't found anything different from what could be found up there. Glaciers, tundra and cold rock. There was nothing paradisiacal about those things. But despite her senile anger, Negiliq knew that it was only a matter of pushing her way a little bit further.

Apaatas were tough creatures, adventurers, conquerors of the north, and Negiliq was perhaps the most resilient of them all. At the mark of her sixth year she realized that that she'd spent exactly six years wasting her life. She had begged for her husband for months to come with her, discover the world together now that the pups had grown past needing them at all. Tattilgat was not an easy man to persuade, especially if asked to abandon his home, but the world was giving the old nan a chance... Whispers spoke of an Apaata who'd conquered the south, they had for years now; but it was the closeness of a foolish yearling who'd followed her dreams beyond the tundra that had inspired her to break free at last and do whatever the hell she wanted.

It had taken her longer, of course. Her old body was no longer the best equipped for such a long journey, but thanks to the kindness of strangers and fueled by her determination, Negiliq had crossed the winterlands all the way down here... To find even more snow.

Itialuit! she cursed again, almost slipping up on the icy surface of the glacier. Her joints ached, her stomach churned and her pawpads burned, but she knew that she was too close to give up. Chulyin would be somewhere down here for sure, so Negiliq sucked it up and went on, unaware that her very destiny was hidden by the white winds just a few more strides down the silver glacier.

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The stench of congregating southerners faded as the girl continued her journey, glad to have not been stopped by yet another fool. The previous wolf that she had met was an awful man, coy in nature, as well as rather moronic. He had neither spoken nor understood her tongue, but that had not prevented him from acting far worse than even a child might. When at last she had rid herself of his company, the solidarity of her travels was regarded as a dream come true. Without any other wolves to bother her, she made a great deal of progress, the glacier spotted in the distance growing closer and closer with each stride. Even from the distance that she was at, still, she swore the snow could be felt underfoot, crunching beneath her weight whilst wetting her limbs. It was a wonderful feeling, realizing that, even though she was far from home, she still had something around that was familiar. So, onward she trudged, determined to make for herself a home atop the glacier.

Before long, the winds carried with them a scent that easily stood out against everything else. Quite some time had passed since the last meeting of the duo, but never could Chulyin forget the fragrance worn by a member of her family. A new fire began burning within her chest, pushing the yearling to increase her speed steadily until she was sprinting across the earth. With the odour in the air there came a great pull on her being, and so she slowed to a stop only after the elder was mere meters away; she nearly slid across the ground, her stop having been so sudden, but was quick to regain her footing. Behind her, the girl’s tail waved around, happy to see a familiar face. As her sides heaved and she panted, trying to catch her breath, the yearling said nothing. No words could form on her tongue whilst her breath escaped her, and so she focused on settling down before diving into an exchange of words.

On an exhale, she uttered, “Negiliq,” a joyous tone lingering with her breathy voice. “Ilitannamek.” Honestly, she would have been happy to see any of her family members. Prior to leaving home, she’d not expected to feel so lost once the home of a distant relative had been reached, but she’d forgotten one important detail: she didn’t know the exact location of said relative, and was left to wander all alone because of that. The thought had never crossed her mind, actually, but now it seemed as if none of that mattered. For despite everything, she still reunited with another Apaata, it just wasn’t the one that she’d been expecting. “Naket piven?” she couldn’t help but ask, curious. Had the elder followed her? In truth, the reason for her being there didn’t really matter, because Chulyin would be happy about her being there no matter what.

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Bad weather, cold lands and deafening boredom... those were exactly all the things that Negiliq wanted to get rid off by leaving the north, but it seemed she'd gotten nowhere yet. Her bones ached, she was too old to keep going forever, she knew... And her energies were already running low. Her spirit remained strong still, and would for as long as it took her to find Chulyin... She only needed her body to keep up and that was the tough bit.

She was just thinking of where to crash for the night, scanning her surroundings in search for shelter and cursing her way all along. That was when she heard it. Something in the distance, hushed by the whistling wind, but there was nothing for her eyes to pick up yet so she continued looking for a tree or a rock perhaps where she could lay down her tired body. But again the sound reached her, and Negiliq pricked up her ears and squinted around in a panning motion to seek the source. Again nothing. It was like a crush, a soft one, like the one a bear makes when walking over snow and frozen stones, so Negiliq was anxious. She knew her only chance to survive a bear was by speed, and being far from a fast wolf Negiliq knew that the sooner she escaped the safer she'd be, and so she fled in the opposite direction of the sound.

But she wasn't fast enough. She was trapped, or so it felt like when the sound grew up to catch her. She turned with bare fangs, ready to lunge, before realizing that the bear was no other than Chulyin herself, and that's when Negiliq threw herself to embrace her relative with a warm chuckle. Chulyin! she said, eyes joyful and excited. I've been looking for you, my dear! she explained, knowing that encountering her would be the last thing the child would expect down south. I couldn't help myself when I heard you were coming down south... I had to see for myself! But to be honest there isn't much to be excited about down here... It's freezing! she said, already feeling her heart warm up at the mere sight of Chulyin.

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The glistening of aged incisors met the girl as she approached, a sight that filled her with a growing concern—had Negiliq been infected by a frothy mouth? This, she soon realized, wasn’t the case at all. Trapped in the embrace of her elder relative, the yearling couldn’t contain herself, a smile wide enough to put a child to shame pulling at her lips. A warm feeling filled her insides, awakening memories whilst comforting the girl. To be with another of her family, a wolf whose blood was the same as her own, was so terribly magnificent that she could not put words forward in order to describe it. This joy, youthful and energetic, only flourished as the woman spoke; she had been searching for her! Although the younger Inuk had considered that, that might be how they’d come to cross paths so far from home, it made her feel better to hear her thoughts be confirmed aloud. It sent her tail to wagging, being waved through the air like one might do with their country’s flag.

From her lips came laughter, soft but not quiet. “Kuviasuvunga takuk ipvit!” declared the yearling, thrilled beyond words. For so long she had traveled by herself, lacking a companion. On several occasions, she had met other lonesome travelers, but few had been able to understand her; the farther south she’d gone, the number of those that spoke only English rose. To be able to speak without being met with anger and frustration was a truly wonderful thing, as well as something that she had missed. The ability to hold a conversation with someone was a simple exchange that she had, undoubtedly, taken for granted prior to her departure from the north. Now, as she shared words with a distant relative eagerly, she realized just how much she had missed it; she didn’t mind using body language to get her point across but, when meeting a daft wolf, sometimes the desired message was lost.

“Nillinattuk,” she agreed, shaking her body with a mock shiver. “Nillak tâvunga!” Her tone was cheerful, a hint of amusement hidden within her words. It was only a joke, of course—this new land was cold, she would not say differently, but nothing could beat the arctic winters.
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To see her spirit rise the way it did made Negiliq's heart surpass the cold that embraced her with fierce fire. It was the familial bond they shared that had Brought them back together, Negiliq was sure, and she was grateful towards the spirits for having given her the chance to see beyond what her old eyes had seen for years. Both Inuks laughed, Negiliq's tone way raspier and harsh than that of Chulyin, signaling the effect of the cold winds, but the happiness of either of them was never surpassed by the other. Her tail was lazier, of course, but the wag of it was as warm as any other, and it danced in tow with Chulyin's tempo.

Ah! So summer is a myth, I see? she jokes back, mocking disappointment before gently coming back to a tender smile as her eyes admire the beautiful yearling heartily. I'm so glad I found you, my dear... she whispers, I always knew there was something very special about you. You were born an explorer, a conqueror... she says softly, but with burning passion in her tired voice. Tell me... she smiles as she pushes closer, What wonders have you witnessed so far?

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