Silverlight Terrace snow thunder

she pulled away and at first he felt jilted, but he saw the way she looked again to the mountain. the resolve there was different from the previous weakness, and different again from the emotive flash of her eyes when winter-man had come. something new, then.

tautukpik was conflicted. they had only just fled the place, and she wanted to return? what if winter-man remained there? he would fight for them; and a part of tautukpik wished he would fight and claw and take them away, and it was something he wished to banish from himself. it was a child's wish to be reunited with his father, with their family.

like akmaaksi had discarded of their game before, he discarded this notion that they could face togetherness again. he would toss that feeling aside; they would be together, just brother and sister. if the village was where she wanted to be, they would go.

okay, he murmurs, lacking conviction; but tautukpik moved with her now and always.