Ouroboros Spine Who are you when you stand alone?

Kilgitsuk departed from Ariadne's glacier village before dawn. He knew the way to her mother's village and had, so far, avoided it. Whether it was carelessness or fear that powered that avoidance, Kilgitsuk had taken his time to seek those familiar paths.

He remembered when he had been injured and returned to health by Kukutux; he remembered visits by Sakhmet; he remembered their departure for Natigvik, and then their return when it fell. He thought of the anger if Kivaluk. All of this ran through his mind as morning wore on to midday, and as the scant hours of sunlight slanted in to an early darkness.

That evening, Kilgitsuk came to the edge of the village he knew so well. He did not call out; he did not wish to disturb anyone at this late hour. He would wait, knowing the routines of those who watched the village limits, and being patient.

Perhaps also a touch more nervous than he would allow to show off.

he had helped ariadne. he had hunted between the villages. he had visited moontide. 

kukutux knew that kigipigak had come back.

but he had not come to her. and sakhmet had too, gone away.

now their son had become a man and had chosen a woman.

now firsthunter faced a journey not of walking, but his mind. aiolos was father to all of moonglow. but kivaluk remembered the man at his first hearth, and kukutux felt that his nature had come from these things.

when the grey sky was stained with shadow, she put on her fine white foxfur wrap and came to find the tall snowhawk. jadestone eyes found his face in silence, and no warm greeting came. she was not angry, and she was ready to welcome him. but not until the things unsaid had been remedied.

He lingered.

Along came the matriarch of the village, and they shared a look.

Kilgitsuk was respectful, as always. He approached with a deferential ease to his body, his head low while he watched for her welcome. If he felt poorly for his decisions he did not show it; the fear he held within himself was buried deep now, and he chuffed softly to Kukutux.

Ariadne fares well. That was why he'd come; she'd wanted him to visit the neighboring moon villages and he was doing that. No doubt the moon mother knew of this already but it would serve to break the ice. I... Also encountered my son. He did not name Kivaluk, did not think to speak his name aloud, and watched Kukutux for recognition.

Perhaps a part of him also wished to lay claim to the young man. It was his blood that ran in those veins, regardless of who his wife had married.

kigipigak mentioned first her daughter, and kukutux disliked this. she would not give her blessing to a union between a man who deserted his family and a daughter of sun and moon.

but she did not know that this was their intention, and so for now she put this thought aside.

secondly, of kivaluk. "our son is a man now. he has been sivullik for many moons."

she did not mention chickadee. this was a man's right to say, not a father's right to be told.

"have you come back to heal what is broken between you, kiggavik?"

There was a coldness in Kukutux now that Kilgitsuk had not expected.

She said of Kivaluk that he was sivullik and at once the father was proud, however, he was also covetous, for she had said our son as if — no, he thought. He knew his wife had remarried; he had not considered to whom.

His mind spun.

He took a breath, and found himself frowning around his thoughts.

I know my wife is gone. That she isn't even my wife, now, he wanted to make jokes! He wanted to laugh at how all of this had played out, yet he found no mirth within himself. There was only ice around that heart which once burned for Sakhmet.

—is that what is broken?

ah! a man! what a man! "you left them," kukutux said in a scathing tone that very rarely showed itself. and now her eyes cooled to greenstone upon a high mountain. "you left your wife and your son. it does not matter what happened between you. a man returns for the children of his hearth."

her gaze softened in pain. "she was happy for a time. but natigvik took joy from you both, and in the end, both of you went away. kivaluk is the son of moonglow. he does not know your face. that is what was broken, kigipigak."

Her tone became accusatory.

She left first. Kilgitsuk knew in the culture of the moon people it did not matter. That somehow the woman was above all, that somehow the faults that broke their family lay with him, in their eyes. No use explaining; he could see the cold of Kukutux hard jade gaze that she did not care for answers.

I am glad he has done well here. I told him as much when we spoke last. Here he became a man of ice, entire. He could meet her frigidity with his own. But whether you and your people see it my way or not, I care little. He is my blood. He is my son. I thank you for your care of him - truly, my trust was well placed, an edge to those words now, brittle shards of winter; —but I am back now. For him. For myself.

This was meant only to be a greeting! A moment to complete a mission for Ariadne. How quickly things get sidetracked.

"tcht! he is not a child. he is a man. he will choose if he comes to you."

her white plume switched; kukutux took a step back on small nimble paws, looking up sternly toward the man for whom she still bore love and respect, even if he did not give her the same.

"i knew a hunter who came back with ice where his heart once was, and he was a man who destroyed his family for generations." adrastus. a warning.

kukutux would not order kigipigak in words. she simply quit his company and turned away, the lines of her body uninviting. for him to return had been welcomed. for him to say such things was not. that evening, @Shikoba and @Aiolos would be told of this, for they must now navigate the man's bond to the land their daughter ariadne claimed.

but for now, moonwoman halted and fixed the trader with a look that said he must leave.

Maybe it was not the man, but his reception that was ice? Kilgitsuk states quickly, while she withdrew. How did this happen? How did they go from family to this, with Kukutux seeing him as an enemy? He had always done what was best for his family. Natigvik, Moonglow, his departure - and somehow only he could see it.

She stared with a look that told him he was not welcome. Kilgitsuk felt further slighted and could not fathom why! His son thrived here! He had gone to clear his spirit, and now he was demonized? Ridiculous.

With a sigh, Kilgitsuk turned to leave.