Ouroboros Spine Say you'll miss me when I'm gone.

The village loomed ahead of them. Almost the entire way back, @Ajei had spoken of @Shikoba and the village, and filled Mojag with stories that nearly made his head spin. He shared a little of what he had seen as he'd roamed: fields of wheat that turned the world gold; tall draconic beasts that lived in herds and ran like the wind; muskox in the land of eternal winter... There was almost as much to say about the world outside of Moonglow as she had to say about the goings-on and changes within.

When the finally reached the outskirts, Mojag insisted that he wait there and be courteous. He had not been home in some time; his scent was wild, and while he wanted very much to see Shikoba he did not want to intrude. It was only good manners which kept him from charging across those invisible boundaries and in to his mother's arms—that and, he was a grown man now.

Ajei frankly talked her brother's ear off. So excited to share the changes with him. She had not even asked after his adventures, but she hoped they had time for him to tell her all his stories. She was a little confused when he didn't want to cross the borders. So many did now, it was nothing to have new faces over their ties. Faces that belonged to Moontide or Moonspear or now Moonsong. But she could respect it. After all they were raised by the same woman who made sure they were mannerly.

You must tell me of your adventures after you have time to spend with Mama and Pop if you so desire.

She lifted her nose and called out for her mother, delicate and trilling as it always was. Then she would settle beside her brother and wait.

This will just be a cameo so Shikoba and Mojag can catch up. She can be pped listening to them and just being present and if she does need to answer something. Just let me know :)

OMG HI IM SO SORRY FOR THE LATE REPLY <333

winter has become harder on her bones, and perhaps this has been the most challenging and taxing of all. through the snow she manages to trudge, laying in her new scents when her body doesn't demand for rest from the harsh climate of cold. and when a new scent lingers in her nose, mingling with her daughter, there is a layer of familiarity to it that causes her ears to prick forward with renewed interest.

she heard ajei's call, and now comes loping through the snow with a hurried pace. and before her, she can see her daughter. and for a moment, she must force her eyes to adjust to wash over the face of the man that stood beside her. 

the ocean had taken in him. he walked in as a boy, and now he returns as a man. part of her wished to smuggle him, to wrap herself around him as she used to when he was so little. but, shikoba didn't want to embarrass her oldest in front of his sister. he stood tall, grown, perhaps even proud.

and when she finally comes to close the distance, both of her children are offered a brush of her muzzle, tender and love-soaked, a delicate kiss to her son's brow. "my son, my mojag," she whispers to him, a low whine in her lips, "i am so happy to see you. you've grown."

Shikoba was a woman who would persist for all eternity. She was there in the strength of his body, the sharpness of his mind, coursing through Mojag as his life force; he could no sooner separate his soul from his body than he could remove his love of his mother from the universe. When she arrived, he was overjoyed to see her and wanted nothing more than to crowd close, to be held by his mother and to bask in her love; but Mojag was a man now, and he knew to be respectful. He wanted to impress upon his sister the values passed down to the both of them by Shikoba - the show of respect, the patience she had taught to them.

Much in the same vein that Shikoba wished to crush in to him and hold him close, but did not.

Mojag did not flinch away from the kiss to his brow. He murmurs a sound in return to her keening whine, hearing his name whispered. Reaching out to catch her chin with his teeth in a familiar greeting, and to brush is nose against her cheek, his tail wagging low.

I am a man now. And I have a sister! He looked to Ajei with a glance, although for now his attention was focused upon their mother and - he began to see her properly, changed. How long had he been gone in to the world? How much time had he left with Shikoba? He felt suddenly aware of how carefully she moved, and it hurt his heart to think about any possible limits. No, she is my mother and she will be with me forever.

He bowed slightly and touched his forehead to her's. I am sorry for being gone for so long.

the mention of his siblings brings a swell of pride within the mother's beating heart, and gently she chuckles in that soft and warm tone she reserved for her children. "yes, a sister and a brother. ajei takes after you, in some ways." the best ways, she ought to say. the mention of his prolonged days away from her only cause the woman to sigh and offer her son a comforting sweep of her muzzle against his body.

"do not apologize," she'd encourage him softly, "i am glad you are here to see us." but her son hsa grown, and there was much to discuss, to learn, to remember and hear. so quietly, shikoba would step aside and encourage mojag back into the homeland once again. "come, you must tell me of your travels and your days by the ocean." an invitation to return home, if just for a short while if he would allow for such an event.