Firefly Glen sialuktuk ❀

a cold rainfall sequestered kukutux beneath the newly greening branches of a low shrub. she had come down from moonspear to continue her perusal of early plants, but she had forgotten her wrap within the den. scowling, the girl now shook droplets from her ears as the deluge continued, knowing there was little worth in seeking shelter while the waters were so heavy.

idly she thought of the goings-on in her packland, wondering if spring would bind jarilo closer, would bring @Revui for more visits near the spire. but the latter was a trader. warmer weather meant he might travel to more distant places. perhaps even the sea. it lapped in her heart, and kukutux tasted the rain as she remembered.

It had been nearly a month since he had seen the pale woman. Their conversation played out in his head sometimes, with bits and pieces fading, but the general sentiment remained clear; he remembered his agreement with her as he returned from another patrol through the wilderness, and with it in mind he set about finding a suitable offering. She had requested a pelt from his latest kill; surprisingly enough Revui had been feasting on carrion of late, but he made the journey to an expanse where he could hunt, and toiled for a few hours.

In the twilight — with rain peppering through the trees — he made his way towards the mountain. They had not discussed a meeting point, so he sought out the last place he had seen her. Hanging from his teeth was a plump, but dead, beaver. Its body had cooled in the time it took to near the claim.

Rain streaked his coat as it permeated the layers; he had yet to blow out his heavy winter insulation and the spitting rain helped alleviate a discomfort Revui had not been fully conscious of. As he passed beneath a bough of pine he placed the dead thing against the dirt and shook his neck and shoulders out, not that it did any good.

kukutux had resolved to take the time for a rest, despite the rain. she had just lain plume over nose when keen ears caught the trudge of wolven pawsteps nearby. immediately upon alert, the young theta raised her head, ears trembling, jade eyes gone scrutinizing.

she relaxed when revui's powerful figure breached the downpour. she could not see what he carried, but slipped slender forelegs out from beneath the shrub, exposing enough of her frame to sound a chuff in the man's direction. he had earned her trust; she would not mind that he was close. and she was welcoming to company that she had previously enjoyed. revui would not talk a great deal or expect it of her, and that alone relaxed the snowdrop.

Movement alerted him to a presence, and with a lethargic look around the vicinity he tried to pinpoint where the sound came from. If it was the woman he had been looking for, or something else. Her subtle movements and soft breathy sounds drew his attention further, and he spotted the curve of her ribs, the lean angles of her legs where she had hidden herself. He licked his lips — perhaps a subconscious cue that said, 'I like what I see,' or maybe he didn't like the feeling of the rain dribbling across his face.

After a thoughtful pause he reached for the dead beaver and hoisted it up again, departing from beneath the pine and slipping closer to where she was hiding. He placed the fat creature down again; it shifted in the mud, rolling on a corpulent belly. Revui huffed softly, sniffed to rid his nose of some drops that had wet his nose, and murmured: For you.

the gesture of his tongue was not missed; it simmered through kukutux, heating her face as she watched him approach. and revui did not come along; he brought with him a fatted kill. appreciation rushed through the young waterbird. "i thank you. this is a fine paluktak," she murmured, turning a warm look up toward the trader.

he brings a bride-price, the spirit suggested, but she quelled it, quieted it. 

"spring comes. this is the rain moon," she told him, shifting herself so that he might join her if he so chose.

She was pleased. He did not know what all the words meant, but that didn't bother him. It was rare that anyone would make the effort to speak plainly around him and Revui had long since adapted to a life of near-misses when it came to conversation. The term flowed from her lips with ease; had he any concept of other languages maybe he would have pegged it as such, but alas, it was merely another word in a long list he did not understand.

When she spoke of the moon Revui smirked, not seeing the connection, but let it go. Rain moon? He repeated, his tone questioning, hoping she would explain a little bit of what she meant. As she settled, he tensed, but then moved to silently poise himself beside her like a watchful gargoyle.

"you call it a 'month.' we call it a moon," kukutux nodded, lifting a small paw to drape over the other. "this is a moon of rain. next will be the leaf moon, when the land becomes green again. sedna walks the earth, and in her pawmarks flowers grow." a story for children. a story for comfort.

she glanced at the beaver, then at tall revui. "is this a good trade for your pelt?" she teased, a smile playing across the bow of her mouth. he did not wear a coat of nightfall like his siblings. but he was one of them, a wild-made ostrega. she found it intriguing.

It was sensible to tie time's passing to the cycles of the moon. A traveller knew when to return home based on the stolen light the moon often lent, and a hunter could prowl in the dark when it was full. Why not use the shapes of the moon, too? It was a simple concept he had not considered, but decided it was a good one. She was a smart woman - her people must have been adept survivalists, and that he could appreciate. As she mentioned Sedna and spoke of magical steps, he lifted one paw and idly glanced at it - then the mark grooved in the dirt - pondering how such an ability might work. A tiny moment of childish wonder which was swiftly swallowed up, as he placed his paw back.

Her teasing wasn't taken as such; he was too genuine, and missed the subtle humour she tried to impart. Instead of laughing or even smiling, he grimly looked to the beaver as if to inspect it with a fleeting glance, and nodded once, satisfied with his work. The lingering quiet thereafter felt... Odd. Expectant. As if he needed to break the stillness with some kind of verbalization - but he did not know what to say.

He ended up speaking the first thing to come to mind: Why Moonspear? The baritone of his voice rumbled, and he felt the need to clear his throat, but afterwards he clarified dumbly, Did you choose it for its name? He meant, of course, that of all the places she could have been happy, she chose this particular mountain - impressive as it was, she seemed more suited to the northland or to the seaside.

his own broad foot lifted. he seemed to consider a moment, and then moved on to talk of why she had come. a slight tension chased the length of her slim jaw; of course he would not know. he had not been upon the mountain when she had arrived. "i was told i might find a husband here. but when i was brought to hydra, i found that i was given to pay a debt instead."

such still caused her tension, to smart within herself even though she had told this many times. it exhausted her still. kukutux did not mention that arcturus had rejected her, nor that jarilo was kind, if not reticent. what would this brother make of it, she wondered. 

jademint gaze settled upon the rain for a long moment, the boundaries of which seemed to escape words, and so she did not speak again, dreading whatever revui could possibly say in response to her admission.

He noticed the tension that drifted through her body. He thought that maybe he had offended her with the question, which wasn't usually a concern to him, but with Kukutux things were different. They had bonded over a shared melancholy before and then again with this trade, and Revui was not accustomed to befriending anyone outside of his bloodline, so that made her significant.

Her answer was simple. It made Revui think of the proposal that Hydra had offered to him; the ease with which his Queen-sister could pair off members of the family did not bother him, as he was pleased to be of use, but he did not fully comprehend what had been discussed. He saw a similar aspect to Kukutux now - but she seemed wary to divulge the details. Hoping to ease her mind and show some support, Revui replied softly: It must be the season. I was given a similar task.

It was not something he had wanted for himself, but he was a simple man. The details of marriage - or even the basic physicality of coupling - had been explained to him as best Hydra could; Revui had a hard time following, and still did not realize how important such a union could be for Moonspear. But he hoped to be of use, to prove his loyalty, his obedience. Was it not the same for Kukutux, he wondered?

Do you honour your family, or... Do you wish for it yourself? He queried next, unsure of which answer he would prefer. If she was following through with the wishes of her superiors - her elders, or those she was loyal to - then it was the same as himself. If it was for her own benefit, then he wondered why she seemed so nervous about it. It did not register in Revui's mind that her options were limited to his brothers — or even, maybe, himself.

again revui surprised her with a thoughtfulness she did not attribute to men. a slow blink; her lashes veiled her gaze a moment before she turned it back to the trader. "both." why the words had ceased their flow she did not understand, but slowly as the seconds passed, she realized she was afraid he would, somehow, see her as lesser.

she had been wife before to the hunter of seals. perhaps this was why she was not desired. hydra had explained her choice and her privilege, but had made it clear that she would not force the decision. it was the way of things; kukutux would not argue it. and yet her heart pined somehow for the stability of a husband all the same, fitting each brother into the role if only in thought.

revui, now. "you are to take a wife?" a light question, a vague one. hydra had not mentioned her unchained sibling among the others; she wished more children for moonspear. how would such a thing be, to remain a trader but keep a wife? "i wish to bring honor to moonspear. and i wish to keep my mother's teachings alive."

She sounded.. Surprised. If he fully understood what it entailed, he would have been shocked at this turn in his life as well. Revui had always been a warrior above all else; sometimes above being an Ostrega, even.

You are to take a wife? Her voice was soft and careful as always, but Revui could not read further in to it. He gave a small shrug, and listened as Kukutux continued - finding that he was drawn to her answer, agreeable to it. They were both honour-bound creatures. I wish to keep my mother's teachings alive.

He wished for the same. Hydra being the Queen with her own children already, it seemed as if Charon and Amekaze's teachings were already well protected; but he could still be of use, and through this marriage Revui thought he could bring honour to himself as much as the mountain. Hydra wants there to be more Moonspear blood. There is a family living on the coast, from what she told me. A woman there. For him to marry, to make fat, who could mother his children. It was all so vague in Revui's mind that it did not feel strange to speak of it, although he was not detailed either. He sounded almost indifferent to the entire thing.

the briefest of contemplations, snuffed by the breath of his own next revelation. hydra had moved more swiftly with revui's betrothal, but that was sensible, kukutux supposed. men could be fickle. did he understand what it was to be husband? did it matter if he planned to roam outside the land? would he go to her, or would kukutux gain a sister?

why did she care about such things?

"perhaps," the waterbird ventured gently, shyly, "we shall both make hydra proud this year."' for it was not too late; her fire-time could arrive at any moment. kukutux was woefully unprepared, and yet restless, impatient for it to debut within her and transform her flesh from girl to woman. "do you think you will be a good husband?"

It was fortunate for him that his woman be so understanding. Thus far nobody truly understood Revui, and few tried. His siblings saw what they wanted: the thick-skulled beast; the boy who used his teeth before reason; the brother who could not be loyal to his blood. He was more than all of these things — and so much to prove, again, again, and again. He could not prove his loyalty nor his love to Charon because he was gone - likewise, he could not be the son his mother dreamed he could become, because she had perished also. So all that was left was Hydra. To appease this queen, this sister who he loved dearly in his way, and hope that it would somehow be enough.

He was quiet a long moment after speaking, and while he listened to Kukutux, he gave no indication of it. His eyes trailed the dirt; his ears listened more intently to the falling rain as if to manifest the ghosts of the mountain. Perhaps they would have something to say - lest they were weeping, now, and he could not read the message they left for him. Kukutux broke the stillness with her next question but Revui had no answer. He did not know what made a good husband, nor even what a husband truly was to a woman, only that it was a means to an end.

Another shrug, heavier, weighted - and silence as he watched the rain puddle in to mud.

revui said nothing, but perhaps there was nothing to be said. kuktutux understood the nature of his reluctant, wolven being. was it not also her own? they both had their silent grievings. they each bore sorrow in their bones.

his shoulder hovered in the air beside her ear, his nearness at once both calming and uncomfortable. the girl wondered at the novelty of it, the tiring, endless stream of sensations she had experienced since coming to moonspear.

gathering every iota of her small resolve, she raised her flaxen head and proffered a lick to his bicep, a tiny press of contact that she retracted almost immediately, hoping he would not be angry or unwilling to accept.

god they are so cute wth ;_;

It was calm here. Even with the weight, with the uncertainty and the pressure to appease those outside of himself. It was calm, and soft, and not at all something he expected to find; but he relished this moment, coveting it for what it was. His life so far had been sheltered, it had been bloody too, with twists and turns and chaos — most of which was self-imposed — but in these fleeting moments with Kukutux beside him, he found himself at peace.

She shifted. He did not move as she adjusted and craned to touch him. Again she was so soft, so controlled, and yet as he took notice of the graze of her tongue she was already withdrawing. He turned his head but did not look at her; he could make out the haze of her shape in his peripheral vision. He shifted, then, moving his weight slightly so that he was leaning against her smaller figure - but not too much. The giant would not want to crush her.

IKRR

her starvation for touch was realized only as revui returned her gesture with the light press of his powerful frame. strength blading through him, the careful cadence of his heartbeat lulling a surrender.

she had lain once beside jarilo, and while the recent memory of that spurred a tight, pleasant feeling in her body, this was different. how, it did not matter.

mouth quirked; she shared in his warmth and relaxed until only the pattering rain and the sound of revui's breathing filled the tiny shelter beneath the wet boughs.