Great Bear Wilderness [wp] uuman kilausirakti • heart drummer

Treepie hardly slept the night before, chuckling to herself as she wondered whether she might actually be more excited than the bride and groom! She got out of bed well before daybreak. Too impatient to wait and too unwilling to rouse those who preferred to sleep in to a normal hour, she departed from Moonspear to head toward the venue.

She didn’t intrude on the preparations, checking on them from afar until it was time for the celebration to commence. Pie’s heart leaped as she settled among the gathered crowd, eager to see what a wedding entailed. She could hardly decide where to look and began to feel a little overwhelmed, particularly when she realized she’d failed to bring an offering to lay at her family’s altar.

Then her grandmother’s gentle voice captured her attention. Tiuttuk stared at her familiar face, striped with crimson, finding comfort in Kukutux’s blessings. But she couldn’t quite push her agitation fully from her mind and soon all the excitement of the day began to completely overwhelm her.

The ceremony drew to a close. She knew feasting and fellowship would follow. Treepie had planned to make up for her absence at the fall hunt. But she could barely bring herself to eat and when she tried to distract herself with a dance led by none other than Ipiktok, Pie could not stop looking over her shoulder at Moonspear, yearning for the quiet safety of home.

Finally, she offered some polite excuses and muttered farewells, then departed with prickling eyes and a heavy heart.