Deepwood Weald [m] red flax

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sulukinak wore a scent that the caribou man found easily. this dutch wolf had a wife, and so cen only expected two in this forest. he was careful, avoiding patches of urine; he deftly kept to the shadows. it was not so easy for a man raised upon the vast and open plains.

he had been to see @Red Leaf some hours before; he had lingered after bringing her caribou from the animal he had killed. he brought its heart muscle, and squeezings of blood, and thigh-fat. he had not spoken much, looking in to see that a boy had been born to them. but cen was ashamed of his failings, and soon set out again.

now he slid through the undergrowth, looking for this dutch man he did not trust.

there was something idly familiar about the man and his wife. the way they kept to themselves, the way she had given birth almost immediately upon their join to the village. and so ironically it was for the man that chakliux looked now.
the lodge he had built 'with' @Sea Hunter stood finished and empty. why should it not be occupied? another could be made for when dutch and his wife visited.
and so chakliux came to find the man, but did not discover him in moontide. the stranger left a skulking trail into the deepwood, and so the seal hunter came after him, curious though it tended now toward suspicion.

it was not long before another followed. dutch? cen raised his head and looked behind himself.

a large white shape ranged forward, and became a man with colorful eyes. cen stared at him, not for the gaze but for the scars, an idle and knowing recognition blooming in him.

this was an ice point wolf, a seal hunter.

distaste and intrigue warred in cen. "hello, fish eater," he grinned with curled lip.

the shape ahead of him coalesced into a man, a tall, dark wolf with hard eyes, who turned and spoke. chakliux blinked, not understanding why the words were so familiar to him. 
and then he knew.
the seal hunter relaxed, chuckling a little. "hello, ground beater."
caribou people and seal tribes did not like each other.
the first contact of all ice-dwelling seal hunters were the muradoii, an ugly, violent people who raided peaceful seal camps and stole women, killed children, and cut men into bait. after meeting such a tribe, no seal hunter cared about the differences between the muradoii, the sharadoii, and the lanzadoii. only old men and old women cared, for they wanted alliances in marriage between the people.
the seal hunter stood tall. "why do you leave your woman? she needs a man in this time."

"lanzadoii women are not so weak as seal hunter wives," cen shot back, relaxing with straight back and slate eyes flashing disdain. "they do not need lodges, nor shelters. nor others. my wife is strong."

secretly he wondered why the man was here, why he moved so easily in the weald. the crafty stare missed nothing. "how do the seal hunter people come to settle in a stranger's camp? there is no sea ice here."

caribou hunters did not like the seal people. the muradoii were an abomination even among them, but the seal hunters accused them all of being muradoii. more than once a potential marriage had been quashed by the elders of caribou villages due to this abiding insult among those fish-devouring tribes.

red leaf bore seal hunter blood. cen tried not to remember.

"i thought the lanzadoii kept to their march," chakliux said challengingly. "i am here because of the sunshine people. they have many villages. this is one of them. your wife bears children in a sunshine camp protected by seal hunter men."
he leaned forward. "if you need help, we have built a third lodge." he did not respect caribou hunters, and he respected less men who abandoned their women while they lay nursing children. "perhaps my wives will make a friend of her. and my son will help to hunt. rest, caribou man. surely you are tired."
surely you are weak.

"the brave seal hunter allows sunshine people to tell him where to live?" cen spat into the dirt. "we will not be here for long. and we do not need your lodge, fish man."

"i have discovered a cousin in your village. she is under hold of a man here in this place. i want to see him and speak with him. when i and my wife leave, my cousin must come with us. she must be with caribou people."

like a hunter with a grip upon atlatl and nocked dart, chakliux stepped forward on tense legs. "the sunshine people made me into who i am. you will respect them while you live among us." he hoped the shade of samani heard him.
the hard magenta eyes searched the caribou man. "what is the name of this cousin? what is the name of this man?"
he did not trust the caribou hunter, and saw now only that cen had come to make trouble. but chakliux held much respect here. a misstep could cost cen much blood and even his woman.

cen stepped back with a placating gesture. "fine. my cousin is named sulukinak. her father was brother to my own father. she speaks of this man named dutch. i would know him. she respects this man, and she will stay with him. but she must be with caribou hunters. we share blood."

his bearing was haughty, his eyes veiled; cen hated all of this but for the chance at his own clan he would strike, and now he bit for sulukinak, to add to his band of wife and son.

now aw! holding back any replies from cen for now

sulukinak! the strange shadow girl? chakliux did not believe the man, who he knew to be cen. but this could not be decided by him. "he is my brother," the seal hunter growled.
after a moment he called for @Dutch, asking that the panther come to his own borders.
for good and mocking measure, chakliux asked also for the presence of @Sulukinak and @Simbelmyne. let the people of the mikiak decide what was to be done with this insult.

Dutch was not far. He had been roving toward the coast, in fact, eager to tell Chakliux of the new little lives born within the wood even though he knew he ought to send for Valiant first. He was still not of a mind to leave Minnow unattended, and Chakliux was easier to reach than Valiant.

The call pricked his ears and put an extra spring in his step — and then the call for his wife and his girl made him slow. A current of unease washed through him.

"Lockjaw," he called out in greeting, drawing near with noticable trepidation but a whisking tail. "Who is your friend?" he asked, using his seal hunter words with confidence. He was still learning, but he could at least form the words he did know with as little accent as when he spoke the common tongue.

He might normally have greeted Chakliux with an affectionate nudge or by knocking their shoulders together to instigate a spar — but the presence of a stranger seemed to call for a little more decorum. His burnished gaze landed on Cen in polite question.

Her cheeks warmed to hear Chakliux call not only for Dutch, but for herself- and Sulukinak, the dark, quiet one- to come to him. She thought perhaps he wanted them for a hunt, and thought glowingly of being invited along. She loped to answer his summons, slowing to a floating trot as she caught sight of three men gathered together. 

She greeted Chakliux, brother of her husband, beloved to her now for the bond the two men shared. She moved then to her husband’s side, pressing her side to his. Soon enough, she hoped, she would begin to show- and then all would know that she and Dutch would be expecting children. 

The stranger was regarded curiously, and given a shy bob of her head.

the shadow girl lurked in the deepwood. she had the sense of some impending change in the air, and heard the call of chakliux of the seal hunters.

she listened to the names: dutch, simbelmyne, and herself, which was a surprise.

given the last conversation she held with dutch, which included thoughts of the shaman of the sunshine-people, she was reluctant to appear.

the girl stalked the weald until she saw the pale outline of chakliux; she saw dutch and the wife, and then the dark shape of -- cen?

brow furrowed, she deigned to stay hidden, but moved to have an eye-line with her cousin and the seal hunter, to watch and to learn.

a man came from the wood, careful and pleasant. cen sensed he missed nothing. a pretty woman with tufted ears followed; he filled his eyes with her rudely. lastly, sulukinak did not show, but why would she?

"is this the man dutch?" cen asked of the seal hunter. when chakliux nodded, the caribou wolf seemed to stare even deeper at the forest warrior who had spoken the fish eater words. "tell him i am of the lanzadoii caribou hunters and that sulukinak is my cousin through our fathers," he spoke quickly, gesturing; "tell him i do not understand his connection to her. impress upon him that when red leaf and i leave moontide, i want sulukinak with me. i am her cousin, her blood. i should take care of her."

chakliux was pleased to see the panther and his wife, eyes glowing to hear dutch speak.in his seal hunter words. cen was brusque and demanding, which chakliux did not think would be well with dutch.
he translated everything aptly, offering the caribou man's name and at the end, giving light mention that the stranger had a wife of his own who few had seen, who had gone to ground with a new litter almost as soon as she had arrived in the village.
behind his scars, his face was still and stark, hard as he stared at the caribou hunter.

Dutch could not hide his adoration for the woman beside him, and he did not have any mind to try. So he could not blame this man too much for the way that he looked at his wife. This was what he told himself, anyway, even as his blood began to pound. He very nearly spat an order for the stranger to keep his eyes where they belonged, lest Dutch be forced to remove them — and then he could only feel grateful when the man spoke, giving him a moment to talk himself down from the sharp spike of fury.

There was a dissatisfied furrow to the panther's brow while he listened, attentive to every word despite not knowing the language. His tone seemed clear enough, and Dutch exchanged a quiet look with the seal hunter, assessing his body language and expression.

A translation was offered. It crawled all over him, and the fur along his spine prickled tellingly.

He looked down at Simbelmyne's face to see what she made of this, and then quickly back to the two men.

"Sulukinak is family to me," he said, his tone even, but only through the sort of restraint that made his words slow. "If he wants her to go with him, then he will have to talk to her about that. I do not want her to go, but I will not stand in her way."

He glanced up and around, past the two men and into the darker reaches of the woods. He did not see Sulukinak, but he was sure she was near, or else drawing near. That she did not come out of hiding spoke volumes to him — but he was unsure, as ever, if he knew exactly what was being said.

The stranger’s gaze was not kind, it was bold. While she did not want to surrender her gaze, it bothered her to be looked at so brazenly when she felt it was clear she was with Dutch. She pressed closer to him, her heartbeat pounding. She looked to Chakliux; who was this man?

He spoke in a language she could not understand, and she recognized only the name of her husband and her quiet packmate. There were no grateful smiles, no hopeful glances- she was given no inkling of what the stranger intended. 

Chakliux remained stoic, and spoke then to Dutch- and she was grateful for his translation. She did not understand why the men were all so serious about the situation- Sulukinak had been welcomed amongst them, and treated well as far as she could tell. Cen, it seemed, did not approve. 

Chakliux gave her some reason to be cautious of the man. She felt reluctant to simply hand Sulukinak over- and like Dutch, she believed it was the woman’s choice. 

”Sulukinak has been welcome among us,” She hoped he might be satisfied at least to know that his cousin was well.

she watched and she listened.

chakliux knew the words of the traveler man, her uncle. the things cen spoke of did not surprise sulukinak so much because the idea had already been introduced to her; but it was dutch who claimed her, at least in part, and sulukinak was reminded of what she had been told of caribou men and the sharing of women.

sulukinak also thought of the shaman woman and the threat that dutch had made - to take her there, for a reason she still did not understand.

simbelmyne spoke in her quiet way. welcome among them, as if she had come late to the party? as if sulukinak needed the approval of this woman she barely knew.

neither dutch nor his woman, nor even chakliux (who very well may have claimed them both as part of their throuple) did not know anything about her. they projected their own cultures upon her and did not reciprocate - dutch, mortified by the harvest. dutch, visiting the caribou lodge more and more.

finally sulukinak emerged, and as she moved to meet those gathered her eyes flashed upon her man, cen.

it infuriated cen, how they looked to chakliux and not to him. it made sense that they would, and yet the caribou hunter felt displaced by the fact they all spoke the same way, and he did not.

the seal man continued to translate. dutch said he would let her go if it was her choice. his wife said she was welcome.

but his cousin slipped from the long trees, and stood with him. cen was surprised! he had not expected that she would do this; he had expected that she would remain with dutch and reject the unknown ways he brought.

the caribou hunter looked at sulukinak with gloating pride, then the seal wolf, then the others. "cousin, tell your man that we are leaving in seven weeks." he slighted the ice point wolf, feeling magnanimous now that he had what he wanted. "come to the village or stay here, you decide this. but when we leave, we are lanzadoii." he faced the glower of the seal hunter. 

"it is only a matter of time before he wants her for a second wife," cen loudly accused, not caring if it was translated or not. his eyes burnt between chakliux and dutch. "if he did not keep company with fish eaters, i would not care! but i know what is in men. if there is a hunter for her, he will be caribou."

with that, cen backed several heavy and deliberate paces, indicating he meant to leave with no intention of returning.

his eyes glittered with triumph.

in shock, chakliux watched as sulukinak joined the caribou hunter! how could she allow his claim? cen was smug, and never had the seal man so deeply wanted to knock the teeth of an enemy into his throat as he did then. 
"sulukinak. how can you be certain he is who he says he is? you are loved here, cared for here. you do not know him," chakliux pleaded quietly, not able to look at dutch and see the emotion on the face of his beloved panther.
until he must! "he accuses you of wanting sulukinak for a second wife," chakliux growled. "it is why he is angry, and why he wants to take her away."

The panther was grateful for Simbelmyne's quiet support. He pressed his nose briefly to her crown in thanks, even as he contemplated how isolated his shadow girl had been. Had they ever spoken?

When Sulukinak appeared, Dutch felt the same quiet dread he had during their last serious conversation. The fear of losing her, or of being forced to hurt her — emotionally or physically, though he could not even imagine the latter. He did not want her to go away because he would miss her, and because he did not believe that this man would treat her well. And, as much worry as he'd spent on her these past weeks, Dutch felt only emptiness and no relief at the idea of that stressor being taken away.

Cen spoke. Dutch, dutifully, returned his attention to the man, his brow furrowing at the tone and expression. He could see his seal hunter's features twist out of the corner of his eyes, but he found himself gazing deeply into the caribou hunter's face instead.

Dutch was puzzled. He was hurt. He was angry. He was frustrated with himself for not knowing what to do.

His gaze shifted to Sulukinak when Chakliux addressed her.

"That is not why he wants to take her away," said Dutch, his voice subdued. "And I cannot reason a man out of a position he did not reason himself into." His gaze shifted to Sulukinak. "I do not trust this man, bachchee," he said plainly, "but I know that you cannot be taken away. You will go where you want to go. I will not try to stop you — but if you decide you will go far — "

His voice failed him. He turned his face away.

"This is not what I want," he said, forcing the words through a tight throat. "But I hope you will give me the chance to wish you well."

Her ear flicked, and she turned her head to look to Sulukinak in surprise. Simbelmyne had no idea how skilled the woman was at remaining concealed, otherwise she might not have been startled to see her emerge. Her tail waved, for a moment- grateful that the Sulukinak could now come forward and proclaim her own intentions. 

The emotions among the men made her wary. The man who had looked at her so ravenously earlier now beamed, gloating in pride. She could see it in the glint of his eyes, the curl in the corner of his lips as he spoke again. 

She felt dismayed that Sulukinak seemed keen to join him, but the sensation disappeared in a wisp when Chakliux explained further. 

Here she was- a new bride to the man she had had to practically beg to marry her- only to find out that this stranger, who couldn’t even speak directly to Dutch, suspected that he wanted Sulukinak as his second wife. 

Was her love so stale already? Was her beauty truly so easily forgotten? She tried to figure out how this stranger might suspect Dutch’s intentions and with growing horror, realized that she whatever had caused him to think such a thing, it was not brand new.

How long had Sulukinak been around, now? Simbelmyne saw her so infrequently but…She recalled the way they had smelled of one another when she had joined the pack. She recalled a look in Sulukinak’s eyes that only ever presented itself when she looked at Dutch. It wasn’t something she would have considered to be adoration, but…At least she seemed interested in him where she seemed so impartial about everyone else.

Dutch denied the accusation. Simbelmyne tried to fret as silently as possible, keeping her breath smothered and quiet. 

She tried not to look at the secretive woman, for fear her true emotions might convey just how unwelcome the woman now was, if she vied at all for Dutch’s attention.

all focus turned to sulukinak upon her arrival and she did not like it.

chakliux spoke and the girl flashed him an unreadable look, hearing his words and countering them, and you don't know me.

none of them really knew sulukinak. it could be argued that even she did not know herself, having lived such a sheltered life within the everdark, subservient to her shaman mother. a hard habit to break.

dutch gave her the choice as if it were under his control, and for the first time sulukinak looked at him and saw the hurt this conversation had caused him.

she saw and heard the silence of his wife as well, who had not moved to comfort him, and seemed to watch sulukinak with her own strange, unreadable expression.

the girl would not say more.

she would not linger.

as the man cen departed, the panther moved after him and was swallowed by the weald.

cen moved away. sulukinak spoke in a way he had not expected. chakliux was shaken; a muscle leapt in his jawline, and he stared after the two until the shadows veiled them from view. "no, dutch. you are right. he does not like you because of me." coldness stirred in his gaze, something dutch might recall from their hunt; that hunger had never left chakliux. it had only been mollified by his trophy.
now another threat raised its head, and this time inside his own home. and thus, so did that empty-gut sensation settle itself on the arrogant cen and what he had done. 
"the caribou hunters do not like us. none of us on either side ever truly knew why. but he says the way i live has shamed you, so -- now you see." he was the one with guilt; he straightened his scarred shoulders and gazed between dutch and simbelmyne. "right now he is part of moontide. that means i will keep him under my watch and i will wait for the moment he can be driven out. this is between you and i, between forest hunters and seal people. but soon it will be between he and moontide."
it was clear he wanted to go and return, to plan; he wanted to sit with his embarrassment and let it boil until he had a path blazed by anger.

Just like that, she was gone. Dutch felt cold and numb in her wake, but he had no mind to call her back to them. She would go where she pleased — and all Dutch could do was hope that she found kindness. Found peace. Happiness.

He sighed, turning a lost look on his wife. He knew she would not feel the same grief, but he wondered if he was more worried than he ought to be. He wondered if he was less.

"She is strong," he said to Simbelmyne and Chakliux both. Perhaps he said it to himself.

The seal hunter got a laugh out of him, huffy but true.

"If this is the truth, I will wear that badge with honor," he said, hiding his annoyance well. His quarrel was also with Cen, who had disrespected his wife and his hunting partner both in the short conversation. To say nothing of whatever had transpired with Sulukinak. Dutch did not yet know enough to decide whether he blamed the man for that.

If he was family to her — if he was her blood — then Dutch felt bound to treat him as such.

"I will seek him out again before this," he said with another quiet sigh. "She may well follow him even then. And so there are things I must know about this man."

And there were things that Cen needed to know, if the man truly sought to welcome her to his tribe. The Harvest was still heavy in his thoughts. He needed to know if Cen practiced it. He needed to know what would happen when he learned of the dangerous and abominable beliefs his shadow girl held.

He looked back at Simbelmyne, wondering — not for the first time — if this terrible truth need yet be shared with her. He'd hoped that, perhaps, it could be kept between himself, Sulukinak, and moonwoman. Now he wondered if even moonwoman would seek to help her, or only to chase her away.