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⟐;; - Elk Charm - 3/28/2026
another day of rain. fish leapt airily in pools surrounded by purple flowering. here the sharadoii had spent many hours of this day, fishing steadily through the morning until a stiffness in her shoulder forced a respite.
a meal of trout and tubers, a wash of muzzle and paws. elk charm cached a good deal of what she had higher up the bank, then tugged several of the remainder out into the sun.
crouching over her catch, she prepared the fish for drying, stripping off all entrails and piling it aside to be used as bait for more of the fast-moving creatures. elk charm caught herself humming, belly rhythmic with the breath these sounds required to make.
a meal of trout and tubers, a wash of muzzle and paws. elk charm cached a good deal of what she had higher up the bank, then tugged several of the remainder out into the sun.
crouching over her catch, she prepared the fish for drying, stripping off all entrails and piling it aside to be used as bait for more of the fast-moving creatures. elk charm caught herself humming, belly rhythmic with the breath these sounds required to make.
RE: ⟐;; - Tsídii - 4/7/2026
It rained, today, in a way it hadn't for what felt like forever. Somehow it still felt as damned cold as it did in the middle of a driving blizzard, but that were nothing new. This land didn't play by the rules Cecil'd learned over long seasons of sun and snow.
The sky was as dark as it ever was.
There weren't anything to be done except hunt and hope, only by now the runes in their numbers had slowed, and there weren't much to begin with. Maybe it meant they'd found all there was to be found, and maybe it meant there weren't any point in trying anymore 'cause whatever had been leaving them was gone or dead.
Cecil didn't like to think it.
It was better putting themself to use somehow, even if the use felt doomed from the outset; dragging tree-branches and the like into an imitation of shelter, being as the mud-earth hogan they would've set up was impractical for a wolf's paws. Still, the little camp looked almost as if it'd been put together by humans and not wolves who thought like men.
The lakes sat fogged in soft rain. Cecil was hunting clay down the banks when they heard the humming, and brushed sticky earth off their forearms when they caught sight of her. Knew Elk Charm'd come south with Nate, walked alongside her with the rest- and couldn't rightly say much more than that.
But she sat crouched over a half-dozen fish, stripping entrails the way a hunter might skin his catch. Cecil had no clue whether she were human once or not- but the motion intrigued them. "Need a hand?"
The sky was as dark as it ever was.
There weren't anything to be done except hunt and hope, only by now the runes in their numbers had slowed, and there weren't much to begin with. Maybe it meant they'd found all there was to be found, and maybe it meant there weren't any point in trying anymore 'cause whatever had been leaving them was gone or dead.
Cecil didn't like to think it.
It was better putting themself to use somehow, even if the use felt doomed from the outset; dragging tree-branches and the like into an imitation of shelter, being as the mud-earth hogan they would've set up was impractical for a wolf's paws. Still, the little camp looked almost as if it'd been put together by humans and not wolves who thought like men.
The lakes sat fogged in soft rain. Cecil was hunting clay down the banks when they heard the humming, and brushed sticky earth off their forearms when they caught sight of her. Knew Elk Charm'd come south with Nate, walked alongside her with the rest- and couldn't rightly say much more than that.
But she sat crouched over a half-dozen fish, stripping entrails the way a hunter might skin his catch. Cecil had no clue whether she were human once or not- but the motion intrigued them. "Need a hand?"
RE: ⟐;; - Elk Charm - 4/14/2026
a tawny flash caught the corner of elk charm's eye, and she glanced to see the familiar face of a walosi-follower with a hint of coyote to their look. a pleasant pine scent wafted to her, and she looked warmly into the eyes which were like autumn. this was cecil, and they were close to nate in a way not yet discernable.
they had offered help and she nodded shyly after a moment.
close to the others, the woman imagined, spaced for privacy but within earshot of the tiny village already taking shape in the heart of lapis.
they had offered help and she nodded shyly after a moment.
we use this,motioning to the piled guts,
to catch more,to the gutted fish. her mien remained open, dropping to where earth still clung to the other's forelegs. what had they been digging? there were many edible roots in this area, and as walosi acclimated to the nestle, she had seen the seal hunter pace out his lodge. she herself was pleased to have a more permanent cache, though she had not yet found where she would build a wetu.
close to the others, the woman imagined, spaced for privacy but within earshot of the tiny village already taking shape in the heart of lapis.
i will let you have one, when we are finish,elk charm added with a glow, turning to spit bones into the brush.
RE: ⟐;; - Tsídii - 4/16/2026
Cecil figured she had no need to bait a hook. Unlike them and Nate, who'd been clueless about it (and on their own end of the measure, still were)- hell, even unlike Nat, who'd taken to the wolf fur much better than they had if judgment was true- Elk Charm knew what she was doing.
They sat, and watched her strip fish with an ease that spoke of someone who'd done it a thousand times before and found themself impressed. She could use teeth and claw like a man could use fingers and thumb, and here they'd spent these last months fumbling like a newborn lamb trying to figure out how to use its legs.
But they supposed they should be gentler. Three-dozen years walking on two legs taught you to do things a certain way, and to suddenly have four was too jarring for the span of a few windswept months where they were too busy trying not to freeze to learn much else.
"I'd like that," Cecil said, with a wag of tail instead of a smile. If there were anyone they could tell were born to this skin, it would be her. "How did you learn?"
Hadn't been fish themself, but they remembered learning to hunt. Their uncle had let them track, let them pull the bow back for the final shot, showed them how to skin and bleed the body- a memory as ingrained as name or clan. But none of it had meant much here, missing everything but their own mind.
There was a sort of precision in Elk Charm that made them wonder if she knew how to do that too.
They sat, and watched her strip fish with an ease that spoke of someone who'd done it a thousand times before and found themself impressed. She could use teeth and claw like a man could use fingers and thumb, and here they'd spent these last months fumbling like a newborn lamb trying to figure out how to use its legs.
But they supposed they should be gentler. Three-dozen years walking on two legs taught you to do things a certain way, and to suddenly have four was too jarring for the span of a few windswept months where they were too busy trying not to freeze to learn much else.
"I'd like that," Cecil said, with a wag of tail instead of a smile. If there were anyone they could tell were born to this skin, it would be her. "How did you learn?"
Hadn't been fish themself, but they remembered learning to hunt. Their uncle had let them track, let them pull the bow back for the final shot, showed them how to skin and bleed the body- a memory as ingrained as name or clan. But none of it had meant much here, missing everything but their own mind.
There was a sort of precision in Elk Charm that made them wonder if she knew how to do that too.
RE: ⟐;; - Elk Charm - 4/16/2026
how had she learned?
father.
once there had been another word for the man which had raised the little girl of the great stag to always be looking for that which might be gathered. in his name, elk charm took twice as long in travel to ensure that those with her might never starve.
riverdark eyes climbed with curiosity the cheekbone of taloka. their name was musical, and the way they watched with intent interest the things she did reminded elk charm of herself in some way. it was not staring for the sake of staring; it was observation, a dedication of detail to an intelligent mind.
elk charm extended a paw, gently thrusting toward her companion a fish which had not yet been gutted.
the belly, slit with a claw. teeth to peel back each side of flesh. offal removed, and then the bones in large pieces of spine if it was manageable.
again, gaze toward taloka, encouraging.
father.
once there had been another word for the man which had raised the little girl of the great stag to always be looking for that which might be gathered. in his name, elk charm took twice as long in travel to ensure that those with her might never starve.
he take me fishing first when i --and here the sharadoii held up a paw not far from the earth at all, indicating how she had only taken a pawful of steps before the beaming man had declared her ready to be a pupil.
riverdark eyes climbed with curiosity the cheekbone of taloka. their name was musical, and the way they watched with intent interest the things she did reminded elk charm of herself in some way. it was not staring for the sake of staring; it was observation, a dedication of detail to an intelligent mind.
elk charm extended a paw, gently thrusting toward her companion a fish which had not yet been gutted.
i can teach.
the belly, slit with a claw. teeth to peel back each side of flesh. offal removed, and then the bones in large pieces of spine if it was manageable.
again, gaze toward taloka, encouraging.
RE: ⟐;; - Tsídii - 4/20/2026
Struck them, then, that they hadn't seen any children since waking up in that pile of snow. But they were kind of glad of it. Kids didn't need to be struggling through the end of the world. Cecil didn't want to have to figure out how to explain that.
Had been hard enough for them to understand, on four legs and two.
Cecil's tail thumped against ice-hard earth. "Was about when my uncle taught me to hunt, too," they said. "I was an awful shot. Got better, though... I think."
Fishing- that were different altogether. They were never an expert, but used to be alright at the casting part.
But it meant nothing now without the thumbs to draw a bow or hold a rod, so Cecil settled down in front of her. Been a good student, once upon a time. Occasionally a decent teacher, too.
Except weaving was probably a bit much to expect of a wolf's paws and teeth, even if she were better at using them than they'd imagined anyone might be. And as for their other skills, well, everything a man knew of the wild Cecil expected a wolf knew better.
They nodded. Figured the start of it, and put a claw up to soft silvery belly, looking back to her with a twitch of their ears. "I'd love to learn. What do I need to do?"
Had been hard enough for them to understand, on four legs and two.
Cecil's tail thumped against ice-hard earth. "Was about when my uncle taught me to hunt, too," they said. "I was an awful shot. Got better, though... I think."
Fishing- that were different altogether. They were never an expert, but used to be alright at the casting part.
But it meant nothing now without the thumbs to draw a bow or hold a rod, so Cecil settled down in front of her. Been a good student, once upon a time. Occasionally a decent teacher, too.
Except weaving was probably a bit much to expect of a wolf's paws and teeth, even if she were better at using them than they'd imagined anyone might be. And as for their other skills, well, everything a man knew of the wild Cecil expected a wolf knew better.
They nodded. Figured the start of it, and put a claw up to soft silvery belly, looking back to her with a twitch of their ears. "I'd love to learn. What do I need to do?"
RE: ⟐;; - Elk Charm - 5/10/2026
what is 'shot?'elk charm asked, shaking her head to dislodge a particularly clinging piece of gristle.
a claw. she crooked her own and dragged it along the belly of the fish, not slicing, only to demonstrate.
first, that. then -- make wide,she went on, motioning with her palms in a gesture of spreading.
see bones? see belly dark? take all.
it would taste of silt and brackish water, but she had learned that such portions carried much strength when eaten in mouthfuls.
if you bring fish, i make like this. or cut, give sun,she faltered with a little laugh, trying to indicate how the meat could be dried.
you do not say father. you say 'brother of father,'she observed, her eyes raising to those of cecil.
there were ways other than her own, but this felt familiar, the substitution of uncle for father where she had known her own.
what you take, you keep,added the sharadoii with a bright look to her eyes.
RE: ⟐;; - Tsídii - 5/11/2026
Shot. Right. A wolf wouldn't know it.
Somehow that still had a way of surprising them- that they were among people who'd never walked on two legs at all.
"The way my people hunt," they said. "We'd take some length of wood- a tree branch, juniper or oak or mahogany- and carve it to the right shape. Then you weave animal tendon into string, attach it to both ends. Hold the branch in one hand, pull back on the string with the other. " Sitting back on their haunches, Cecil imitated with both forelimbs, bent awkwardly in a way a wolf's legs truthfully couldn't.
"Then you make an arrow to shoot with it. Usually bone or some sorta rock for the tip, tie that to a thin piece of wood... then you fletch with feathers. Split 'em down the vane and attach them, to help it fly straight. We don't have the teeth for a wolf's kind of huntin'." A prolonged pause while they settled back to all fours, Looking wistfully at the paws that'd once been a human's hands. "Or- I do now, but the rest of us don't."
Cecil missed the bow. The gun, too, but that seemed a harder thing to explain to someone who had never been anything other than a wolf.
Now, they imitated Elk Charm's careful claw strokes, wishing they had a good knife. Took a couple tries to get the edge to catch and split open. They felt like a kid again, growing into limbs they weren't certain how to use, and were certain they looked the part, all shaky lines and the delicate ribcage fracturing under too much pressure.
Their ears pinned in concentration as they nudged bone back into position. "For bait?" Like the pile gathered at her paws? "Or for eatin'?"
These things had become a lot more palatable to their mind over the last few months. Tearing open the tough fur and skin on a deer's ribcage with nothing but their teeth had started to get their mouth watering instead of the repulsion they were expecting to feel, and even the dark mass of organ nestled here was nearly appealing.
Nearly. The idea of something even adjacent to cooking was better.
"Shidá’í," Cecil says. "My mother's brother, rightly. My father was around, but my uncle and I were closer." Their tail wagged, gentle. "That the kinda family you had?"
Somehow that still had a way of surprising them- that they were among people who'd never walked on two legs at all.
"The way my people hunt," they said. "We'd take some length of wood- a tree branch, juniper or oak or mahogany- and carve it to the right shape. Then you weave animal tendon into string, attach it to both ends. Hold the branch in one hand, pull back on the string with the other. " Sitting back on their haunches, Cecil imitated with both forelimbs, bent awkwardly in a way a wolf's legs truthfully couldn't.
"Then you make an arrow to shoot with it. Usually bone or some sorta rock for the tip, tie that to a thin piece of wood... then you fletch with feathers. Split 'em down the vane and attach them, to help it fly straight. We don't have the teeth for a wolf's kind of huntin'." A prolonged pause while they settled back to all fours, Looking wistfully at the paws that'd once been a human's hands. "Or- I do now, but the rest of us don't."
Cecil missed the bow. The gun, too, but that seemed a harder thing to explain to someone who had never been anything other than a wolf.
Now, they imitated Elk Charm's careful claw strokes, wishing they had a good knife. Took a couple tries to get the edge to catch and split open. They felt like a kid again, growing into limbs they weren't certain how to use, and were certain they looked the part, all shaky lines and the delicate ribcage fracturing under too much pressure.
Their ears pinned in concentration as they nudged bone back into position. "For bait?" Like the pile gathered at her paws? "Or for eatin'?"
These things had become a lot more palatable to their mind over the last few months. Tearing open the tough fur and skin on a deer's ribcage with nothing but their teeth had started to get their mouth watering instead of the repulsion they were expecting to feel, and even the dark mass of organ nestled here was nearly appealing.
Nearly. The idea of something even adjacent to cooking was better.
"Shidá’í," Cecil says. "My mother's brother, rightly. My father was around, but my uncle and I were closer." Their tail wagged, gentle. "That the kinda family you had?"