Moonspear bargaining (part 1)

A final push brought forth a charcoal-black boy. He was impossibly small, and Sialuk could not believe that Maggak and Acrux had ever been so tiny. He reminded her instantly of braataa, and she kissed his little head as he reached for milk. Pauk, she said, giving him a name. A tiny soot sprite against the silvery-white of her own fur. In a whisper, she gave him his spirit name: Nukik.

She heard voices outside, and quietly, she invited them in. A boy, she said, smiling down on him.

Her body rested now, though not for long.