Gifted Pelt

Chapter 47

Astrila shifts against the furry surface beneath her, glancing down to see white fur. A flurry of emotions flashes through her as she scrambles away from it, out of Kōri's hold. She doesn't stop moving until she is off the pelt, her bare skin touching cool stone. Kōri raises his head up to look at her, frowning.

"What's wrong?"

Astrila gasps, "I'm sorry, I was on your pelt. I didn't mean to be touching it."

His confused expression clears in understanding. "It's alright, Astrila. I knew you were on my pelt and it's fine. I trust you with it."

Astrila sags in relief and steps over to the pool of water. She sits once the water is up to her calf, letting it lap over her legs. There is a rustle and Kōri moves towards her. When he sits beside her on the incline, she leans into him.

His voice is soft. "What's bothering you?"

Despite his attempt at a nonchalant attitude, she can hear the slightest bit of worry in his voice. Astrila lets out a soft sigh.

"Everything, nothing."

His voice grows softer still, so quiet that she can barely hear him despite the fact that he is right beside her. "Do you regret it?"

Her head whips toward him, so fast that he recoils in shock. "Kōri!"

He grimaces. "What? Is it true?"

Astrila shakes her head frantically, trying to soothe the fear in his eyes. "No, I don't regret it. I'm just thinking."

"What are you thinking about then?"

"The Ludeag, the words of the wind, the prophecy in the history room, my Aos Sí ancestor. Everything feels like a shattered floe of ice, Kōri, and I don't know how the pieces fit together to make the whole."

He folds her into his side for a hug. "Perhaps we aren't meant to know just yet."

Astrila nods. "That may be so, but that doesn't mean I will be able to stop thinking about it." She frowns. "How long have we been here?"

Kōri shrugs. "I don't- Look."

"What?"

He points up to the roof of the small cavern, where a hole to the sky has appeared. The purple-gray color tells Astrila that it is dusk, or close to it. She scrambles to her feet.

"We have to be back before nightfall!"

Astrila dresses frantically before she darts out of the cavern. She stops when she doesn't hear Kōri behind her, almost halfway up the tunnel. She twists around to see him standing beside the room, his pelt held in his hand. He is dressed, but he hasn't yet slung his pelt over his shoulders or started up the tunnel.

Astrila frowns in confusion. "What is it Kōri?"

His voice is quiet, awed. "It feels strange, being able to be this far from you."

It is now, when Kōri voices it, that Astrila realizes that she is farther from Kōri than she has ever been. She shrugs.

"You won't have to follow me on my rounds with Tonraq anymore."

"Why wouldn't I?"

Astrila frowns in confusion. "Don't you have to be with the hunters or the fishermen?"

He shakes his head. "Normally, I help patrol the village, see if any selkies need assistance, work like that. So I could continue to help you and Tonraq."

Astrila fiddles with her hook while she thinks about that, only to feel it warm beneath her fingers. She lifts it up to examine it and notices that there are several new symbols. Kōri notices where her attention has drifted.

"What is it?"

She wordlessly points at the pendant and turns it over to look at the symbols. Along with the symbols that were there before, the pendant now has a sun for the Siqiniq bond, what appears to be a ribbon - Astrila thinks it might be referring to the wind-music - a smoky ball with eyes that must represent the Ludeag, and a basket for her role as healer. Kōri peers over her shoulder at the hook.

"New marks?"

Astrila jumps a little. She had been so engrossed with examining the pendant that she hadn't realized he had made his way over to her.

"Yes."

"Which one is new?"

She shrugs, flushing slightly. "I don't know, I haven't noticed any new marks before, besides when I first got the pendant. So it could be any of them."

He looks down at his own hook. "I'm going to guess the sun, because I didn't have that one earlier and it would make sense."

She nods. "Then it's that one. Should we head back now before it gets dark and people start to worry where we've disappeared to?"

Kōri laughs. "Yes, let's go."

They continue up the tunnel to emerge at the cave entrance. It must have known how quickly they needed to go. Each of them locates the rest of their clothes and slides them on before they emerge from the warmth the cave provides.
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What do you think of this chapter? What do you think the prophecy speaks of? Tell me your thoughts!

I also have one question that is kind of unrelated: I finished the covers for the next two books in the Saga, do you guys want a sneak peak? One cover, both covers, or no covers? Please tell me!

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~Goddess of Fate, signing out.