Ouroboros Spine Who hung the moon

It was good to be upon familiar ground.

Samani had been made weary by the travel from the glacier to their home. As they had drawn nearer, her heart had quickened. She had missed the spine. It rose like a fortress and welcomed them in. The moon child drank in the scents of old, surprised that there seemed to be others that had passed through – wolves that did not belong to Moonglow.

After some rest, the young girl had found energy inside of her. She set out in search of something that might occupy her time. She wondered what her father was doing. The sun man was always a warm light, something that brought happiness to the moon child’s heart. Samani began to search for him, though she would be happily distracted by anyone else she found.

The long road home had been enough to dissipate Kausiut's initial anger and disappointment about yet another move, leaving her empty, disinterested in life and following the group passively. The only thing that gave her comfort and which she did not leave out of her sight for a second was that dried fish. With it in her jaws she had walked the distance, with it, placed safely between her paws, she slept soundly.

Her crippled leg ached, making weight-bearing uneven on the rest of the feet. Therefore, when they reached the Ouroborous spine, Kausiut was not only exhausted, but every muscle in her body ached. She spent days just sleeping and recovering and even then, she had difficult time moving around.

Exploring was out of question and the bored child found small solace in playing with the treasures she had found here. The fish was there, some rocks, a piece of twig, bone and antler. Stolen piece of fur. What had first started out as mimicking Sialuk's prediction game, had evolved in something bigger for Kausiut. She placed them in different formations, murmuring to herself in a tongue foreign to all, save for herself. She seemed to read the meaning beyond the items and find great joy in it.

This was, what she was doing in a small clearing, free of snow, when Samani found her.

When Samani came upon her sister, she slowed her pace. The young girl watched Kau with a curious eye, careful not to interrupt what she might have been doing. Samani had never seen her sister so intently focused on anything that wasn’t violent. She could not help but wonder what had piqued Kau’s interest.

The moon child padded toward her sister, tilting her head in hopes that she could make out what was on the ground. As she drew closer, she felt her paws slow to a stop. She wasn’t about to get in a fight over her sibling’s treasures. Their last scuffle over a toy had not gone well. Samani did not want to be soured by Kausiut’s sharp tendencies.

What are you doing, Kau? the young girl asked quietly. She kept her distance, giving her sister the room she needed.

Kausiut still picked up fights with other puppies occasionally, but she had mellowed down recently and rarely became as violent as before. She would never admit it to herself, but she had realized that even Samani had outgrown her sister in physical strength. Avoiding trouble was key now for her own survival.

Samani knew Kausiut's antics well enough, therefore her approach was acknowledged with just a look, but no growl or bared teeth to remind, who was in charge. She did not reply to the inquiry - Kau rarely did - rather she left her toys, approached her sister to greet her with light wag of her tail and careful sniff of the other's muzzle.

With this finished she retreated a little, beckoned to come closer and, if it was done, she commanded quietly: "Sit!"

Samani allowed her sister to take the lead, knowing that Kausiut was easier to appease if she was allowed the space to do what she wished. The girls were different, but they had learned to understand things about each other that had brought them closer. Samani was certain that her sister was filled with potential. She even found herself admiring the other girl. These were things she would not admit aloud, but that filled her mind on many occasions.

The young figure followed Kausiut to where she had been working. Samani sat where instructed and peered down at the items her sister had gathered. She canted her head this way and that before she fixed her eyes on her sibling with curiosity.

Samani’s tail wavered as she waited. Kau had all of her attention.

Usually Kausiut was very conservative about her routines and ways, how she did stuff. Any detours from the known pattern of her life was met with resistance, frowns and in extreme cases anger. However, when she felt that change was necessary (or she simply wanted it), the move was easy and seamless.

That was the case with her obsession with items. The game itself had rules that only Kausiut knew, but by now it had evolved from her mindlessly mimicking Sialuk's and Ingram's actions to her playing it with people instead. And with Samani - a willing and voluntary subject, unbeknownst to her - she decided to try something different.

She picked out a piece of driftwood, which she had brought back from their last trip to the ocean, and put it by her sister's paws. She nosed it towards her and then said: "Name?" Kau sat down and with her head tilted to the side, waited for her sibling to catch up with the game.

Samani watched carefully as her sister brought a chunk of driftwood over and placed it at her paws. Kau then nudged the piece closer to her sibling. The young moon child peered down at it with a thin-lipped expression. Interest burned in her gaze, but she did not want to give her curiosity away. Samani had learned early enough that Kau carried mischief within her, and she was skilled at using it.

Kausiut wanted a name.

Samani blinked before leaning forward and sniffing at the driftwood piece. It was full of scents that she would have liked to analyze closer. The girl could not understand if Kau wished for her to provide her name, or if she was seeking a name for the treasure that had been discovered.

Samani, the moon child whispered in response. Her jadestone eyes shifted back to Kausiut to see if that had been the appropriate answer.

Samani had either not understood the rules of the game (Kausiut was not sure of them herself, but she would never admit it), or she had added the most unexpected twist to them yet. Either way in an unusual wave of generosity (probably the first one in the boisterous puppy's life), the symbol-master decided to give this piece of driftwood to her sister. After all there were more items in Kausiut's stash and this was by no means her favourite one.

She pushed it to her sister, as if to indicate that she was the new owner of it. Then Kausiut invited her to explore the collection of items she had gathered during longer and shorter prowls within the village. She was in a good mood and not at all annoying to have around. What a surprise.

Wrapping up my threads. Thank you for being such a good sister to Kausiut!