Big Salmon Lake Why are you hanging on so tight

AW!

the lake stretched vast and quiet before her, its surface kissed by the pale glow of early morning. mist clung to the edges where reeds bent under the weight of frost, the air thick with the scent of damp earth and distant pine.
periane worked in silence, save for the soft hymn that murmured from her lips, a prayer of devotion as her paws moved with careful precision over the fox hide. crimson stains bled into the water, swirling in delicate ribbons before vanishing into the lake’s depths.
she did not flinch at the blood. the act was sacred, a cleansing of both body and spirit. her voice never wavered, gentle but steady, as she smoothed the pelt over a flat stone, letting the cold water purify it.
the hymn carried through the still air, a quiet offering. she had always found comfort in the ritual, in the steady rhythm of work and prayer intertwined.