Ocean's Breath Plateau ivory heart

set the morning after this thread <3 can be a joining or RO; tags for ref, open to all

chakliux had eventually lain down in the sleeping place of @Raiyuk and @Matteo, easing himself into slumber with little thought beyond amusement of any antics that might take place while his eyes were closed.
the next morning the seal hunter awoke before dawn, woke the boys, and led them out to gather the oil-rich fish, pogy. each fish was no longer than the length of a paw, and so many would have to be gathered and carried back in a skin.
he showed them how to forage for the small mollusks, chitons, and how to locate the ugyuun plant. the roots could be dug for eating or medicine, the stalks themselves peeled for another meal. 
after that, the man took them hunting for murres and their eggs. this was the sort of easy, safer work that seal hunter women often did while their men took to the sea for larger game. and while they healed, these tasks would not be so hard upon a body. with nine weeks of child-carrying ahead, along with the months it took to wean the pups, chakliux explained that it was important for men to know these things also. eventually storms would come, so vicious that no hunter should be out upon the ice. they would rely then upon stores of food collected in the lodge-caches.
they returned with a bounty for breakfast.

Their meal with Dutch had been a rousing one filled with recounts of great stories and adventures, all of which kept Matteo's undivided attention until it was time for bed. He had been mildly surprised to see Chakliux there that night - wanting to ask him why he didn't stay with the other adults and if it had something to do with how Tullik and Marina smelled. Nevertheless, he had made ample space for the man before drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

His wound healed slowly but well. Matteo made sure to bathe his hip in the ocean's salt water every day and clean it morning and night with gentle laps of his tongue. 

They awoke bright and early to hunt and forage the ocean shores. The fish were easy game, though their swiftness took some getting used to. The mollusks and roots were more forgiving in the fact they they did not move. It was the egg-gathering that had the steepest learning curve for the river boy, but with careful guidance from Chakliux and Raiyuk he was able to scrounge a decent amount and only got pecked twice in the process. The trip was a welcome break from the stuffiness of the lodge and he found himself enjoying these menial tasks more than the fast-paced bison hunt.

He came to Chakliux as they returned to the lodge, a bright smile on his face. "Is Dutch still here? Someday I want to see a desert and hunt with coyotes - just like he did!" Matteo had never met a coyote, nor knew what one looked like. However, it was curious to meet a non-seal hunter, like himself, become so close to a seal hunter, like Raiyuk. "What do you think of him?

"ah, he has gone back to moonsong," chakliux told the boy with a regretful tone which brightened in the next moment. "seals make the ice mountain their home. they are not the same which raiyuk will hunt for his ceremony, but you should see them. dutch enjoys their singing. he can tell you about them."
a flashing grin lit his mouth; "he is panther. he is a greathunter. and his words are steady. truly, you should listen to all that he says. dutch has great wisdom and he offers it freely to the ear."
he looked beyond them both, back to the lodge where his wives still rested in greenbloom. quick teeth peeled a stalk of ugyuun. "i know i invited you among us as lodge-brother to my son," the seal hunter said, filling one side of his mouth with the watery plant, "but i have come to think of you as a son to us. i have not asked you in some time if you want to be part of the seal hunters." he gazed steadily at the boy. "whether or not you accept, your sleeping-place is assured. you will need to work until next winter, but — if you want to go into the desert and hunt those creatures, you should have the protection of oil father."

The mention of Moonsong had his ears pricking in interest. Though he and Raiyuk had hunted for Ariadne once before, they had not ventured up the ice-mountain to see the seals. "I would like to see him before we leave for the seal-hunting place," he agreed. He had much to ask Dutch and, perhaps, much to learn to satiate his growing curiosity. 

Anxiety bloomed in his chest at his next words - or was it joy? To be called a son, to feel as if he belonged. It was complex as it was exciting. "Often I think about what my real dad would be like if he had stayed," his grin faded to something more solemn. "I used to think I missed him, but I've realised I've kinda been missing the concept." He had searched for it in Germanicus, once, but he had found it in Chakliux. "I think I see you as more of a real dad than him." Matteo met his gaze, lips quirking upwards. Chakliux had been there to guide him where Ulrich had not - it was simple and yet something he had never expressed in words before. 

Chakliux went on to ask again if he wished to join the seal hunters. "I don't think- I'm not sure I'm strong enough to be worthy of calling myself a seal hunter yet," he confessed. Chakliux was not present for the hunt, but Matteo's scars were telling enough of his cowardice. And Raiyuk was so...so much better than him. Amidst pride for his lodge-brother's upcoming ceremony, there stirred a bitter sentiment of feeling left behind. "I'm not cut out for hunting, Chakliux. I got scared with the bison - they were so big and there was so many of them. When you ask me to hunt a seal, I'm not sure I'll be able to do it." 

emotion thickened his throat, and chakliux knew any words he might have spoken would come out heavy and unheard. 
but when he had composed himself, the seal hunter reached to touch matteo's shoulder with great and evident pride. "this brings me much joy," he grunted, grinning now once more as his eyes turned back to the sea, to the rime of ice forming.
"fear and hunting go together. i saw those beasts. they are fierce on land, the way seal are in the water. you must learn to hunt them, the way i can teach you to hunt the seal. but," chakliux said, looking back at matteo, "maybe you are meant for other things. but do not think that your lack of knowledge makes you unfit. we all must learn."
fathers must teach.
raiyuk would leave alone, chakliux assumed. he would travel and trade for a year. and when he came back, matteo would be ready. they could go farther, if raiyuk did not want to settle in his second year.
or perhaps raiyuk would want matteo with him either way.

His touch was welcomed with an affectionate smile as he listened to Chakliux - his father - speak again, his words resonating strongly with all he had felt over the past months. "Thanks, I-I think I needed to hear that," he swallowed thickly. "I dunno what I'm meant for really," he confessed then, joining him as they gazed out to sea. "I'm still figuring it out, but I want to learn everything."

His eyes searched for something intangible then, something out of reach, before they softened. 

If he would partake in his own seal hunt next winter or not, Matteo wanted nothing more than to work hard for his family and prove to Chakliux he was worthy of being called his son.

"I'd be proud to call myself a seal hunter, and you my father, and Raiyuk my brother."

for a time thereafter, father and new-made son sat in silence, all of chakliux showing his delight in expression and bodily mien. "i will teach you all that i have learned, about all i know."
this was his pledge, not just as father but as seal hunter. even if matteo did not take to the icy salt, he was one of them and this would be upheld from this day forward by chakliux.
"come, my son. we will hunt birds for my wives. you must not go to the home of your mother with nothing," he grinned, straightening as he imparted this first bit of wisdom to his son, then stalked off across the snow, shouting last, "and then we will find your brother!"