Ouroboros Spine or in the temple of absent gods

a careful man. a man who had lost or feared loss. kukutux felt now that the weariness she sensed in valiant was countered only by a bond with his brother, and she considered again what dutch had told her quietly of his heart and his own desire.

"our hearts desire even when our minds say we must not want such things. to listen only to spirit is to deny mind. to heed only mind is to deny heart. they must work together for your happiness."

the caribou meat was unpacked; she touched the toothmarks left behind but saw that her own teeth had made similar. the hide could be soaked and dried to expand these places once more. humming over the craftwork of the hide itself, she folded the hide and the ermine and set it aside.

"ariadne is already a strong leader. raiyuk's father, chakliux, was once one of us. he married and moved to moonspear. i am glad his son will know the sunshine people, and that we will know the seal hunters. aya! it is like my old home!" kukutux exclaimed softly with a grin.

from the ulaq she took a good elkskin and started to fill it with leaf-wrapped packets of tea. the first was a sachet of summerdried rosehips, to stave off whatever sickness might come with breathing the ice before one was yet accustomed. the second was a crumble of yellow flowers, also dessicated by the sun, to warm the belly and help with consuming colder food.

and the third; perhaps valiant might see her hesitate.

her claws sifted softly through dark red leaves; her jadestone eyes looked back upon the man. "we all have the want to be loved. i was afraid to let aiolos love me," moonmother went on, gathering the last tea into a package wrapped in different leaves.

it was a mixture to replenish during the fire-time the energies lost. taken after, it would support conception and strengthen the womb against loss.

kukutux knew she could not stand against what came next. ariadne would bear kigipigak's children. this was a truth that existed no matter what her traditions said. the ancient world moved in a greater power beyond the wants of an old woman.

"i had lost my home. my village. the whole mountain. i had lost my husband and my son. i believed my daughter also to be dead, and almost did not believe when she came down from moonspear. i was filled with terror to love again."

the elkhide was tightened around these herbs. kukutux set aside the gift and looked now to valiant with a soft expression. "aiolos loved me for both of us through that first year."