Moonspear kinigaa ∫

aw but maybe a @Keres? set for tomorrow morning

the darkness before dawn had grown colder. and still the young wife pulled herself from alongside the warm form of her sleeping husband. little things bloomed in the night, and faded at the touch of sunlight. muzzily, she yawned, stopped at the bank of the nearby stream to dash water across her features, and shook herself awake.

a gathering song, in her throat. a strip of faded red foxfur wrapped around her slender shoulders. green leaves to be found, to be collected, to be taken back to her clearing; kukutux glowed in the gloom, her heart light for this moment.

eeeeeeeeeee <3 -loves on you- i love me a surprise ebony thread

With the sun yet to break the spell of night, Keres rose to begin her routines. With the chill of winter looming like a great beast above the Wilds, her breath furled into the dark as she moved, first trailing her way towards a cache; her intent was to check its stores, to begin the process of stocking up for the coming season.

Intents, however, did not always come to fruition.

She heard the melody before she spotted the melodist, ears adjusting and steering her course to find the medic she knew only the name of, and that was simply because her brother had divulged such information to her.

I thought I was the only one awake at this hour. Keres announced herself with words soft and quiet. No need to speak in greater volumes when the rest of the world was yet asleep.

<3!!!

kukutux' song died a quiet death as the grayling woman who had guarded revui that day came upon her. "i greet you." in some way they were family, in the convoluted manner of the sprawling ostrega lineage through moonspear. brother to dirge. marriage-sister to hydra. the duck supposed their bond was the same, and offered a soft smile.

"i was taught that wives rose before the sun's face," she gave by way of explanation, plucking another fragrant caribou leaf from its nestled bed. "winter comes soon." she paused, giving the she-wolf a curious look. "i am kukutux."

Phone post!!

In an instant, clarity rang itself strong in her mind; wives rose before the sun, the same wives, she assumed, that little Sialuk had gone on about. The brief moment of remembereance coursed through the woman, quick and powerful as lightning. Her heart had ached that day, and while there had been a brief period of resentment for the child, it had gone as quickly as it had come. Sialuk was but a child, and children didn't know any better. 

Keres, She replied with a gentle wave of her tail, watching the woman go about her gathering. May I help you, Kukutux? The query was accompanied by a smile. While this was not quite what she had in mind, it was preparations made for winter all the same.

an invitation of help. kukutux studied keres with a curious look, noting the cascade of slate and silver made compelling by the evergreen stare. and she thought also how all ostregas had the same countenance: cool and removed from the second speaker, though keres' voice carried none such.

"yes," she agreed gently, motioning to the clipped plant and the others yet uncollected. "it is called sargiġruaq," she named. "it helps with the winter sickness." by which she meant the coughing illness that can often creep to elder or to child during the snowy months, but kukutux was unsure if keres would understand, as she did not know a good description. "you are brother to dirge?" the duck asked after a moment, letting a mouthful of them fall to the small pile she had created.

At the acceptance of her offer, and the explanation of what it was that Kukutux was doing, the valkyrie strode closer. She would not attempt to repeat the word that had been uttered, if only because she was not sure she had heard correctly.

A cold? She would ask, not as a correction but as a means to understand what sickness the white wolf spoke of. Keres studied the leaves for a moment before looking to the foliage herself to identify them so that she could mimic the medic's movements then.

When asked if she was Dirge's brother, she smiled gently and chose not to correct this, sure that it had been a slip of the tongue. I am. We are littermates. A slow rhythm began to form: pluck, turn, drop. pluck, turn, drop.

And you, are you Sialuk's mother? And Saviguk's?

"it is," and here she paused, considering, taking three more leaves from their stalks as she thought. "after snow comes, the cough that arrives in the chest of babies. and the old ones," the healer explained slowly. "to chew this leaf, or drink it in water, it helps to move the coughing away."

with hope that her explanation would be clear to keres, a smile alighted upon the duck's mouth. "yes. they are firstborn." sialuk first, kukutux recalled, though in her world they had breathed air together and were thus equal in birth. "i am wife to jarilo." she was careful not to assign their parentage to the man himself, for that might anger a listening spirit. children belonged to their mothers. the man closest to her might own the soul she swallowed, the one that split into her children, but the duck could not be sure.

The knowledge the medicinal-focus wolf imparted was useful and appreciated, tucking the little tip away in her mind for when the chilly nights came. While she had never pursued a career in healing, Keres had always been fascinated by the notion and had gathered small tips here and there along the path of her journey.

Smile mirrored, her tail waved behind her as she listened, gently plucking another set of leaves as she did so. A mother's first litter would forever be special, though it was possibly she held a bias, having only ever birthed her first set of cubs. A pang of longing struck her then, hard and fast and imperceptible to anyonesave herself. It would be a feeling she would dwell on later when she found solitude once more, perhaps towards the heights of the mountain.

Children are a blessing, She commented after setting the leaves down into Kukutux's pile. My own have grown and gone away, out on their own now. There were days when she wished the two girls were yet young and small, and wondered if the pale woman beside her would ever feel the same. Jarilo is Hydra's brother, yes? I think that makes us related, in some form or fashion.

a surprised shift of her ears. keres was also a mother? it was not that kukutux found such things improbable in the greyscale woman. it was only that she had made no announcement of it, and seemed to be finished. this was foreign to the duck, who had been reared between endless births; always an aunt bore a child or two still nursing, children born at the end of the spring or into the brief warmth of summer. always there was another pup to call cousin.

but she could not hold moonspear to that. it was different here, and always had been so. "yes. you are my ... ukuaga," she offered sheepishly. "it means you are also sister to my husband. there is no word for two over." a soft laugh. a flick of her tail, and she began to nose the leaves onto the leather-side of the fox fur. "we are all family upon the mountain. a clan. our own village."

Ukuaga. Keres repeated the word after her, testing it on her tongue. The language was obviously different, but the Ostrega did not have to wonder at what it meant, for Kukutux readily explained. Truthfully, She replied with a smile. I don't think there's a word for that in my laguage either, so ukuaga it is. Glancing at the still rooted but now barren herbs, Keres could not place the thoughts that loped through her mind, words not doing any of the emotions or feelings true justice. None of it was bad, no, but what were words? How did they work?

It was a quiet minute before she answered, tail waving gently as the woman watched Kukutux gather everything into her pile. I did not expect to find my true home again, being among my family I mean. It has been many years since I've seen Dirge, and even Nyx, and this... The mountain, my family, the children here... Her head shook, her smile ending that sentence better than her vocabulary could ever hope to. And then, that smile shifted into a small, playful grin. Your daughter is quite the matchmaker, by the way. She was very convinced that I came here to be Saviguk's wife.

she too was amazed at how hydra and dirge had made of moonspear a great nunaakkik. their young warriors high in number, and many cubs this year, a reflection of their strength. her own position promised, and her husband a chieftain too among them. a sidelong smile as keres continued, and then a blink. a laugh.

"she is determined and does not walk away from the things she believes to be true," the duck remarked of her raindrop's tenacity. a pause, wondering if her sister would think differently of her for the old ways she taught to her young ones. "in my ulaq — home," she corrected for the woman's benefit, "i have told sialuk my mother's teachings and our words. it is how we stay alive even when we are alone."

Wanna wrap soon? <3

It is a gift to know such conviction so young. It is a thing some will neber learn, and never know. A gentle smile twisted her lips then, listening to the explanation and accepting it with ease, for Keres had never been much of a judgemental creature. Where are youu from, if you don't mind? She had never heard of such teachings, and while she thought nothing less of Kukutux for it, her curiosity remained.

fade w ur next post? <3

she enjoyed keres and her gentle way of offering compliments. "i am from the faraway sea, on the ice." the familiar pang in her spirit sounded. it had grown less in the past cycle of moons, but was still present. "we were a small clan, with many cousins to the east and to the west." a pause. "that is where i learned all of what i know."

a quiet second; kukutux rolling her shoulders. "i must bring these leaves back. will you help me?"

yesss. NEW THREAD SOON <3

A faraway sea. It sounded mythical, magical even, though Keres knew magic was as real as the Greek valkyrie she was named for; she had never believed in much o anything that she couldn't experience for herlsef, whether by sight, smell, or touch. Of course, She would answer, moving forward to assist as she was asked. Helping the medic had been a pleasant addition to her day, and she looked forward to learning more about the pale mother throughout her time here.

Fade!