Cricket Creek Bog Nobody likes the records that I play.

The bleeding had finally stopped, though its surcease was followed by a day or two of nausea that left Towhee wondering. She opted for absolute denial. As soon as she recovered from her queasiness, she tried to make herself useful by patrolling the copse.

She finished her midday route at the southern end of the territory, then decided to try finding some small game for Meerkat. There was a promising scent trail leading further south, though she remembered her daughter mentioning an up-and-coming pack there.

Her nostril’s flared in disapproval. Nevertheless, she swung west toward the bog. She spent the early hours of the afternoon scouring the frozen marshland. Towhee managed to catch a scrawny muskrat, then retraced her steps back toward the place where Sun Mote Copse and Cedar Sweep met.

Tags for visibility: @Asivaq @Kigipigak

Asivaq would be giving birth soon, he reasoned. Kigipigak did not know how long it took despite being a father once before, and only presumed that by the whale-shape of his beached woman, she would be ready to burst as soon as winter released its grip upon the land.

He hunted while she slept; he kept his patrols for the early evenings while she ate her dinner; he often did not sleep alongside her until the very late hours, and would be up and roaming very early, so he was hard at work to secure their village home and saw less and less of her. It was alright.

He stole what time he could of her; watching her sleep, often leaving her gifts of a fresh breakfast or more toys for the children to utilize later on.

Now he patrolled between their village claim and that of their neighbors, his aokatti and the man's wife having gathered enough bodies to find success before Kigipigak and his own; and while he felt some envy, he was not too bothered by the rise of the Copse. It would be good to have his friend so close. Their children could grow together.

Kigipigak passed a gap in the trees and that was when he saw a muddy figure, dark in complexion, and he didn't think much of them, as they were upon the same border he patrolled, and he presumed they were a part of the Copse and that was why he didn't recognize them. He gave a greeting sound - a sort of boof - which went unrecognized; and that was when he stopped and watched them, a little perturbed.

Towhee had just passed back into her daughter’s territory when she thought to pause and glance in the direction of the sweep. She didn’t expect to see much, so she jolted a little when her eyes met a stranger’s a short distance away. She promptly shifted to face him, brow furrowing when she realized he was vaguely familiar. She couldn’t quite place him.

She bent to set the muskrat at her feet, meaning to call out to him. But Towhee realized she didn’t know what to say to this man. Meerkat and Njord didn’t seem to mind having neighbors so close, yet she couldn’t help but feel perturbed about it. Even with the slight familiarity, Towhee wasn’t sure she could make nice with these folks.

Are you known to Njord? He called out to the stranger, watching as they stopped and looked his way. Kigipigak did not immediately recognize them, and did not think this was someone known to his wife; for them to be here between the villages, they were either a thief or they were known to someone.

Perhaps they had been recruited to the Copse. Kigipigak did not know, and would wait for an answer before letting his guard down. He was protective of Asivaq but also the wife and future children of his aokatti, and would not hesitate to call upon his blood-brother should the need arise.

Towhee’s eyes narrowed when the stranger called out a question to her. It wasn’t that she couldn’t read his lips, it was his phrasing that struck her as odd. She didn’t answer right away, though she could see no harm in relaying this tidbit of information.

Of course I am, she said, jerking a leg at the copse around her, otherwise I wouldn’t be traipsing on their land. He’s my son-in-law.

The woman sounded offended. She held an accent he hadn't encountered before, to his recollection anyway, but he took her answer to be the truth. The bristling of his fur smoothed as he moved along the borderline.

I am Kigipigak, I live in the cedar forest here — Njord is a close friend. I was only doing my due diligence. That was as close to an apology for his question as she was likely to get. The man slows as he nears her position and studies her a little bit more closely; but still, he cannot remember if he's seen her before.

Can't be too careful given the season.

Her lips pursed, a couple scathing thoughts drifting through her head. Towhee discarded them out of hand, though her eyes narrowed again as she tried once more to place his vaguely familiar features.

We’ve met before, she said even more slowly than usual, but I can’t remember when or where. Although your name makes me think ‘northerner.’ Are you one of Kukutux’s people?

Were those even one and the same? Towhee wasn’t sure. Maybe she was conflating them. Either way, she blinked and waited, one paw rolling idly over the muskrat carcass at her feet.

There was some recognition on both parts, then. No names came forward in his mind but there was that spark; and when the woman mentioned Kukutux—well, Kigipigak was glad to be recognized and also a little bitter, thinking that so many others considered anyone of northern descent to be "one of her people"; as if there weren't others! It was by no fault of the stranger.

I am of the north, yes. I am Kigipigak. He was quick to announce his name and then follow up with, I am of a similar people; they are called Tartok, and their ways are very different than those of the lady of Moonglow. In this way he could show his knowledge of Kukutux and her many villages, which was something he was once quite proud of and now—that bitterness, again.

My wife and I have settled in the cedar forest.

Nothing he said jogged her memory, though she found it curious that Kigipigak called her “Lady of Moonglow” versus her much more common title of “Moonwoman.” Towhee had heard of Tartok here and there, though nothing she could specifically remember on that note, either.

Mm, was her only reply to his statement about the cedars.

Take your cues from Meerkat and leave it alone, Towhee reminded herself.

Nonetheless, she found herself asking, Why did you choose there? The hinterlands are huge and largely unoccupied. What made you decide on the forest right beside the copse?

There was a momentary pause, but the woman held her own question for him. It was easy enough to answer—although the deeper truths he would conceal, given he did not want to share too much about the abandonment of Moonsong.

My wife chose it. We explored a few places, but it was her decision that ultimately led us to settling here. If there was more to it Asivaq would need to answer, and she was not present. Kigipigak gave a small chuff of a laugh all the same. We were just as surprised when we learned someone had made a home nearby. But it did not bother us. It is good to have neighbors you can trust.

It felt almost like he was defending their choice of home. Who settled first? How close were they? Sure, they shared a border but they were friendly with one-another, and it still took the majority of a day's run to cross through the heart of the territory. There was plenty of space.

He took no responsibility for the decision; it had been his wife’s. Towhee’s nostrils flared. The next few words out of her mouth made her eyes narrow. Boy, they really hadn’t done their research, had they?

You were surprised? she scoffed. They’ve been in the copse since last year. And if you’re on such good terms with them, why wouldn’t you support their village instead of building yours right on top of theirs? Look, my daughter and her husband are way too nice to say it but your decision is ignorant at best, downright disrespectful at worst.

With that, she snatched the muskrat off the ground and marched into the copse. She didn’t know if she would tell Meerkat about this exchange—she didn’t want to stress her out unnecessarily—but she had a feeling she really was just saying the quiet part out loud.

What he thought had evolved in to a friendly exchange took an abrupt turn, and Kigipigak was left a little bit slack-jawed while the woman turned to leave. She'd vollied an accusation his way, and he did not appreciate the insults either; but it all happened in such a wave that he didn't have time to react.

The woman had grabbed whatever she'd hunted and was disappearing among the trees, leaving Kigipigak feeling a little dizzy; but he would put aside whatever ill-feelings this left within him. This was some old woman with her own views, not someone he cared about with an opinion that mattered.

As off-putting as that was, Kigipigak decided it was better for everyone not to verbally retaliate or chase her down. It just wasn't worth it. Instead he turned and stalked off among the trees on his side of the invisible line, continuing his patrol all the way back to where his wife would no doubt be resting.

With people like that living nearby, maybe it was worth it to get a little space.