Ocean's Breath Plateau silver sparrow

a visible relief flooded chakliux; he straightened, grunting gently at the strain to his aching leg, and stood back, away from the denmouth. he made no promises of her comfort there, only her safety, for he relied now upon the consistent guardianship of raiyuk and taggak.
when the boy spoke, the seal hunter's throat constricted with a dry bob; he left the answering of that to red leaf, only stood awkwardly to one side of the path, ready to guide them.
"will you let me carry you, akiak?" he said finally, addressing the small and tentative boy. and in this the berrybright sheen of his worried eyes found those of red leaf, and saw how the shine had gone from the maple-red of her own gaze. she was close to death, he felt, but reined himself from trying to hurry the caribou wife along.