Ouroboros Spine ᐊ aniuvak

Backdated before the hunt!

the morning was soft as down, mist drifting low across the glen like breath held close to the earth. ippiksaut moved through it with quiet purpose, a bundle of herbs clutched gently between her jaws. willowbark, dried chamomile, crushed sea-lavender — all wrapped in a strip of softened hide. strong medicine for a woman carrying life so near to breaking open.

the path to raindrop’s den wound beneath leaning spruce and frost-bitten grass. she followed it unhurried, ears tuned for the faintest sound — a sigh, a shift of weight, the soft murmur of a mother speaking to pups still tucked beneath her ribs.

when she reached the hollow, she paused. the den mouth was warm with scent: milk rising, swelling belly, the trembling edge of soon-to-come birth.

@Raindrop, she called softly, setting the herbs at her feet. i come with gifts for your strength.

she stepped inside only as far as courtesy allowed. her mismatched eyes softened in the dim.