the first step to forming a seal hunter was to meet the scent of seal.
one such body had been killed by the hunters of moontide, a small one drifting too close from the colder waters.
as soon as it had been beached, chakliux cut a strip of blubber from its underbelly, and ran toward the lodge with it, streaming water and jubilant;
"ah!" he sighed loudly when he saw the children. "see what i have brought?" he set the blubber down and urged them closer, to taste, to see, to experience. "this is our namesake. this is the seal."
Chagak stirred from a nap as his father bounded into the lodge. He was up in an instant, ears pricked and nostrils flaring as he raced to beat his siblings to the man and the treat he'd brought to them. It was something that required his thorough investigation — Chagak made a clumsy pounce for the blubber and latched onto it with needle-like teeth.
A ferocious growl rumbled in his tiny throat. He someone to try and take it from him — the frenetic wag of his tail belied this show of aggression.
Father returned; Sea Hunter recognised his pale face and berrybright gaze, but did not rush to greet. At the tender age of three weeks, he'd only just recently found his feet and he was yet to figure out his own balance.
He moved carefully, much slower than his brother, who gripped at the fatty object that Chakliux had brought. Sea Hunter did not veer toward the grey-furred sibling who clung possessively to his prize, but instead padded around their father's feet with curious sniffs.
sirmiq had grown bitey in his teething stage, continually gnawing on whatever he managed to get ahold of. sometimes in was one of the furs that lined the lodge, sometimes it was a toy gifted by loved ones, sometimes it was a sibling. what he chewed on did not matter as much as the relief it gave him.
he'd been in the middle of nibbling on his own nails when father brought something before them. a gift! a gift for him!
he stood with a quick burst of excitement, though was not quick enough. both of his brothers were ahead, though only one dared to snag his gift. he barreled past sea hunter with a shove, tripping halfway and scraping up his chin. but he recovered quickly and set upon the other end of the blubber with a rumble of his own.
it seemed chagak and he were now engaged in a friendly bout of tug-o-war.
chagak growled! sea hunter explored. sirmiq grabbed it from chagak, or tried. chakliux approved of this behavior among his sons; he gave low whoops and encouraged their roughness, pausing to sniff here and there with sea hunter as well.
the seal meat stretched between them, dribbling seawater upon the good clean floor of the lodge. chakliux did not notice, so excited he was for his boys to interact with the namesake of their people.
Sirmiq joined them with urgency, pushing roughly against Sea Hunter as he busied himself at their father's paws. The boy gave a frustrated little huff at the disturbance and moved to glower at his brothers as they stretched the strange fatty object between them.
Sea Hunter was not so interested, not until Chakliux encouraged the boys' behaviour with excited enthusiasm. He suddenly felt as though he was missing out on something amazing, and loped forward to get involved.
He parted his jaws, attempting to grab a mouthful.
There was no place he might be happier, even if the fog of war was already covering the young boy's eyes. It was too much excitement for his small body, and he released the excess in another puppyish snarl aimed at Sea Hunter's face.
Sirmiq was welcomed with a similar sound. Chagak gave the seal fat a hard shake, his body jerking along with it as he put as much force behind it as he could. Now engaged in a three-way game of tug, the boy yanked with all his might to try and tear it free of his brothers' grasp. In the end, he only tore off a tiny shred of it, and went tumbling tail over nose for his trouble.
Jarred and dizzy, the boy sat for a long moment before, suddenly, shaking it off and rocketing toward the action once more. This time, he aimed to sink his puppy teeth into Sea Hunter's furry butt.
the other brother joined in the tussle, and while chagak's attention was primarily focused on sea hunter, sirmiq remained fixated on the true prize. he sunk his grip tighter, a possessive growl slipping from betwixt tiny jaws. unlike chagak, his tail did not flutter behind him but rather remain stiffed and parallel with his body.
this was not a game! his brothers were trying to steal his meal!!
he jerk his body in small bouts of tugs, head whipping from side to side to try and release the grip of sea hunter who still stubbornly held on. chagak moved to attack his brother's butt and sirmiq saw his opportunity. he gave a mighty yank in hopes to free the fat from his brother and run off with the prize.