Moonspear eldermother

chakliux was unused to being treated by men, therefore when alaric and argent came to check upon him, they would find the man tense though agreeable.
when @Sialuk came he softened; and tonight he had sat up, facing out to look at the foliage which bordered the healing ulaq. 
he watched for the rainstar.

tag for ref!

She came with a rabbit skin full of herbs to treat the wounds of both @Quennell and Chakliux. The former remained mostly quiet, though she was glad that he had family here in Meerkat and Njord. The latter was likely to heal more quickly, based on the severity of his injuries.

When she arrived, he waited at the opening of the hollow tree.

Chakliux, she greeted once she had dropped the skin just outside the ulaq. There were many ways the river of conversation could go, and Sialuk thought she feel see the branches of each one in the air. I have heard from Nasamik, but I wish to hear from you. Why did sunman strike you down?

sialuk came, and chakliux had begun to slip into his usual winning smile when the starwoman gave her question. the seal hunter stared out at the unexplored moonspear and drew a low breath. "i lay with nasamik before i asked."
though he had not known that way, he was angered by it.
"her time, it did not come in the usual way. i did not know she was with child until —"
a rough exhale. a roll of his shoulders.

Sialuk listened. She did not know if he told truths. But how could she know? Only the bones would be able to tell her, and that would need to wait. Their answers were not always clear, just as Chakliux's words were not. She knew him to be clever with words.

You will claim them as your own, yes? she asked. Nasamik had called him husband, and Chakliux had called her wife, but that did not mean he would take the children as his own. Sialuk needed to know these uncomfortable things so that they might move on.

chakliux nodded. "they will be mine." he knew why she asked. many men left children in their lodges to whom they did not mean to act as father. others sired new life far beyond their villages. this was not something against which chakliux stood, but he meant to stand beside nasamik.
there was a pause.
"kannoyak builds a lodge for the three of us. when do you believe i will be healed enough to hunt?" he asked, berrybright eyes searching her striking snowgloss features.

If he had said no, Sialuk was not sure that it would change anything. She merely wished to know how to navigate such knowledge. She listened then as he spoke of Kannoyak, and her own features softened. The hunter was strong, and she thought of him often. For a moment, she thought "the three of us" meant Chakliux, Kannoyak, and herself. But she banished the thought from her mind, remembering Nasamik. Sialuk would have her payment from Chakliux, but she did not intend to take him away from his wife.

She bent close to see his shoulder wound then, her breath close on it as she tested the air near for signs of sickness. But none came, and she pulled away. Tomorrow, you may move from the healing ulaq, she decided. Five more days until you hunt. He was indebted to her.

I will call for you to my ulaq when I am ready for your payment, she said, her smile now coy.

tomorrow! chakliux was both elated and roused as sialuk drew close to set her attention on the wound given by sun man.
tomorrow he would leave. five more days for hunting.
chakliux knew what he could do.
but for now he laughed, moving for her even as a stitch of pain sounded in his side. "i will be happy to barter in your ulaq," he growled lowly, seeking to brush muzzle to her cheek.

Sialuk felt the heat rush to her cheeks, but she knew he was not yet well enough to do such things. Soon, she said, swatting him away with a grin. She did not yet know how Nasamik felt about the arrangement, but Sialuk found herself remembering what the bones had said. It was her right to seek payment in the form of pleasure, and she would do as she wished. Chakliux was willing, and it was between husband and wife if Nasamik disagreed.

Do you intend to give children? Or only payment? she asked, curious. The latter could be done when his healing was done. The former would require patience on both their parts, as she would need to delay him until she was ready.

"what does the rain star want of me?" chakliux asked, studying her face with his sharp magenta eyes. he had assumed she wanted him for children and not only pleasure.
the seal hunter knew he could give both. sialuk's children might be bloodkin to the ones nasamik carried. this pleased him.

I do not yet know, she said, but the bones will make it clear when the time comes. They had always been a comfort to her. A guiding voice for difficult decisions. Sialuk did think that Chakliux was a fine specimen of a hunter. He was strong and quick, and he had proven that he could recover from injuries as well. Those were qualities she wished to see in her own children. They would be strong, just as the mountain they would be born into.

fade? <3

"i will be here when i am wanted," he told the raindrop woman, eyes searching her own.
despite the rousing of his body, the flesh of chakliux was weary, not yet ready to be called upon.
her hips were another incentive to heal, and he grinned suggestively at sialuk before he laid back upon his mat.