Bitterroot Valley out across the cities, I see buildings burn into piles

"Brother?"

At once Suga was on his feet, churning snow beneath his paws in his race to greet the woman - his sister! A sliver of doubt made small as he got closer, studying her features just to be sure before pulling her into a tight embrace. Her scent was different, her face no longer as full as it was. "Miu!" It was undoubtedly her.

"You've lost weight," he scolded light heartedly. "Where have you been? Have you been eating enough?" The questions tumbled from his mouth as he pulled away an arms length. Despite the pile of fish nearby, Isugajuaq could feel her ribs beneath plush fur.

Before he could open his mouth again, she was shoving him roughly away and wriggling from his grasp, leaving the river man to sit in stunned silence.

"If you are here to take me back, think again, brother. I swore to never see another river hunter for as long as I live. That includes you."

Jaws parted, but no sound came. His body, frozen, he could do nothing but watch forlornly as she growled and stalked away. If only he'd told her how much he'd missed her, how he'd searched for weeks to find her, perhaps she would have stayed. But now his heart swelled with grief.

By the time Suga achingly rose to his feet, the sun had crept below the horizon and cast the valley in an eerie twilight. The moon would soon see him gather the salmon and feed in a sad, sorry silence, for as much as his appetite had abandoned him, he did not want to waste food. The task occupied his mind for a time until it didn't, and he was left with a heart as hollow as a fallen tree. What was his purpose now?