Blacktail Deer Plateau tuviatchiak

They were both bashful. It was a new feeling for Kigipigak, always the bold and brash creature filled with prideful masculine energy. There was no reason he could see for the change, only that she was a calm sort of creature unlike the boorish women he had grown up with; he was at-ease because she was so placid, and the challenge of making her smile and laugh and feel good was new to him, perhaps due to his nearing adulthood.

I like talking with you. He comments next, and knows immediately how stupid he sounds. Kigipigak has always enjoyed the sound of his own voice and the effect his boasting has had on others, either to prompt a fight with another man or to impress the adults he's lived with. With Sakhmet it felt different because she did not force the competitive side to take over for Kigipigak.

Before, when I told you of my people... I wondered about yours, he broached the topic as carefully as he could, not wanting to upset her. I did not ask then, but I would like to know... What sort of home you had, if you'll tell me. Or maybe something else, if you'd rather not. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable but he was deeply curious.