Great Bear Wilderness the freshman

post-dated for the 27th. @Elentari

She had called upon the medic to accompany her to Moonglow. Not only because Kukutux was a well-known healer, but also because Sialuk wished to get to know the woman better. The well-worn path between the two villages was not long, but it was enough for the two to settle into a steady, side-by-side, rhythm. Sialuk had not forgotten about the man Elentari had hoped to find.

We will ask of Kukutux if she knows the man you seek, Sialuk said. She let silence fall for a few paces, then spoke again. If you find him, will he be your only lover? she asked. Sialuk had not hid her attraction to the other woman, but she had not pressed it either. Still, curiosity drove her to the question, and a playful smile pulled at her lips as they moved forward.

Keeping some details vague, for now.

The time had come for Elentari to accompany Sialuk to the village of her mother. Moonglow. She had been looking forward to this trip. To see the village in which the star woman's own blood made her home. To meet the respected healer herself, to know the woman who had brought up a fine daughter. A wolf she was proud to call friend. As a sign of warmth and of the bond she wished forge ever stronger, the Archer came with a gift. A fresh pelt, draped neatly over her shoulders. Trading furs and skins, she knew, was favored between the clans.

"It can't hurt to ask." She agreed, walking comfortably at her silver counterparts side. Some time had passed between the chat they had in her den. Elentari carried herself with a new air now. A new outlook over the matter. "But I am not getting my hopes up." A pause in her step, blue eyes connecting with amber. Instead of answering her question, she veered from it. Feeling it did not matter which answer she might give. "Sialuk, a while ago on one of my forages away from the Spear, I searched for his scent. There was no trace of him." She did not sound sad. Just accepting. "If he truly is gone, then I am prepared to move on." She set her lips firm, slightly. "I will not waste my energy chasing shadows."

An Archer through and through. A woman who knows what she wants.

The starwoman frowned as she listened to the words Elentari spoke. Sialuk knew that people came and went, sometimes at the same rate as a river flows, but it was still difficult to see them leave when one could see a future ahead. She knew that it would pain her if Argent left her, and now Elentari, too.

This is a good outlook to have, she said, her steps easing her toward Moonglow little by little. You know of the man Argent? she asked, a teasing light in her eyes. He is courting me. I wish to ask my mother what bride price he should pay. Sialuk thought also of Elentari, inviting her to declare her intentions aloud.

Sialuk need not worry. Elentari had no plans on leaving Moonspear or severing the ties with her...close companion. "Yes...it is a truth we must accept." That didn't mean it wasn't painful. In her case, the Archer supposed the sting was less, given that she only had met Julian once. Knew only his name. Nothing else.

Argent on the other hand... She was slightly more familiar with. "Of course. He was the first to greet me when I came to your village. And, shortly before our departure, he helped me hunt down this..." She gestured to the glistening dark skin around her shoulders.

The light in her eyes mimicked Sialuk's. "Mmn, so I have heard. Many a time I have heard his path to warm your ulaq." She grinned, far from oblivious of what was going on between the couple. "He is a fine man. Quite the catch. My only regret is that I do not know him nearly as well as you do."

There was no jealousy in her voice. Argent had chosen Sialuk, and she him. She wondered if Sialuk still wanted a wife. And if so, what her chances might be. She knew the star woman was receptive, given her customs. "A bride price...what is that? What does that involve?"

Argent was a fine man, and it was no surprise to hear that he had been the one to greet Elentari upon her arrival. He likely saw some of the qualities that Sialuk herself admired in the dark girl. The starwoman did not mind to keep her affairs private, and she smiled coyly at Elentari's note about her other lover's comings and goings.

For every bride, it is different, Sialuk replied. It is why I seek anang's council. But there was another thing Elentari had said that Sialuk caught. Would you like to know Argent as I do? she asked. If she was to pick who to share kivinik with, Elentari would be a superb candidate. Not that she would choose for him, but the thought of the three of them together was a pleasant one indeed.

She was intrigued, to say the least. She had not heard of this thing, a bride price. Growing up, her traditions were different than Sialuk's. More straightforward. She and her Archer line sought only commitment, good faith and strong moral character. Most of all, a deep connection between a prospective mate.

The starwoman and Argent, had what she sought. She was drawn to them, comfortable in their presence at any moment. Happy. She thought to ask further of what a bride price entailed. After all, it was Sialuk who had opened her mind to new possibilities. A way of life. Before she could voice it, she asked her something that both shocked and delighted her.

She circled in front to block her path any further. Peering at her with a flirtatious, knowing look. "Do you mean to imply as a wife?" Her voice was thick. Heavy. She stepped closer, reaching to encircle silvered shoulders with the arms of a dark huntress. "Or as the man he is, at heart?" Her nose traced along sparse, coarse whiskers, grazing Sia's lip.

Sialuk clicked her tongue. I do not know him as wife… yet. And then Elentari was embracing her, and whatever she said next was lost on the starwoman’s ears. But if you wish for children, having them alongside you would bring good will, and Argent is a good man. Sialuk grinned, licking the place between Elentari’s eye and muzzle.

There was much to navigate. And Sialuk did think it would be a test to see Elentari and Argent interact in the same ways that she did with them. Would jealousy creep its way into her own heart?

"Mmn, I see." The nod of her head forcing the track of Sialuk's tongue a little further up her forehead. Her eyes squinted cutely. "It is wise to take time in establishing such a serious relationship. Be it with a man or a woman."

Sialuk seemed open, even encouraging of her to partner with Argent, if she wanted children. A good sign, she hoped. Her thoughts landed on the steely man, smiling pleasantly as she recalled their earlier time together. "He is. And I am rather fond of his company. Of the times we've shared. How he was the first to greet me when I came to the mountain." 

Enough reminiscing. She pulled herself back to the present, to the topic at hand. "A family is one of the reasons why I came to the Teekons. For the continuation of my bloodline. But, only with the right person." While serious, her grin was sweet. "Imagine my surprise that it was you, Sialuk, who grabbed at my heart first. The first night we met...I already felt a connection with you..."

"From there, I felt it only grow stronger. You opened my eyes and mind to new possibilities. A way of thinking, of culture that I had never considered before. I want to embrace it, fully. If I have a family, Sialuk, I want those children not only to be mine, but yours as well." All this talk, the pouring out of her heart, was getting to her. As if shy of rejection or what she might say, she hid her face in the plush silver of her fur.

Elentari spoke. Sialuk listened. She wanted family. Children of her own. A legacy to pass down. Sialuk understood, wanting this not just for herself, but for the spear itself—now for Elentari, too. Her lover's request was not unexpected, but it delighted Sialuk all the same. She had always known she wished for the village to be comprised of many children, raised beneath one sky, and now this dream came closer to a reality with Elentari's admission.

And mine, yours, she whispered quietly into the dark woman's ear before pulling gently away. Come, let me take you to anang. She should know the woman who will bring children to my ulaq. And one day, be ayagang.