Gifted Pelt

Chapter 56

Astrila frowns. "I'm sorry? Could you explain?"

The red man's face splits in a smirk. "You see, your people aren't protected."

Astrila places her hands on her hips. "Excuse me?"

To his credit, the man in blue does shift nervously at her tone. The man in red seems unfazed as he continues speaking. "Your island isn't part of the Clyde River reservation, so it isn't protected. The government has decided to take it back. You'll have to go somewhere else."

A blast of panic hits Astrila. They can't take the island from them! She searches frantically for a way to deflect the situation, and it hits her as the wind swirls around her, tugging and pulling at her hair and clothes. It's urgent, insistent, for two reasons it seems. It is trying to tell her something, but it also hints at something else. Astrila smiles to herself, she has the excuse she needs.

"A storm is closing in, and quickly. Why don't you return when it passes and we can further discuss this then."

The man in blue opens his mouth, but the man in red cuts him off. "I don't think so."

Her voice turns scathing. "Well, I'm certainly not going to stand out here in the middle of krotla, a blizzard. So go, before it's too late."

They leave without a word, but the man in red gives her a dark look over his shoulder as he crosses the ice to the boat waiting outside the bay's mouth, where the ice is broken up enough to allow a small boat's passage. The look is full of anger and promises of pain. She just smiles sweetly at him as he goes. She looks over at her father to find him frowning slightly.

"Is there truly a storm coming or did you say that just to get them to leave?"

Astrila laughs. "Oh no, there is a storm coming. We'll see it on the horizon within the hour. Likely less than half an hour. I just got them to leave a bit earlier. I needed time to think."

"About . . ."

"They said that the island wasn't protected, but I remember seeing something about a treaty that first day of research. I needed time to find it."

Kayi's eyes light up slightly at her hopeful tone, but he is still frowning in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"When Tarkik and I went to Clyde River, we borrowed a book on the history of the government's treatment of the native people and the treaties made. They have to abide by the treaties now, most people wouldn't stand for it if they didn't. So if we can find the treaty I saw, if it grants us the island, then we're safe."

He understands at last and breaks out into a run towards the iglu. She follows him at a lope, faster than the one with Juatan but not quite at her full speed. Still, it's close to it. It doesn't take them long to reach his iglu, but it's enough time to see the beginnings of the storm on the horizon. Astrila ducks inside, going right to the stacks of papers still neatly piled against the wall. They're moved often enough that they don't get lined with frost, but they're damp enough that she is careful to touch them.

She finds her pile easily, remembering that she had put aside the treaty to look at later. When she put it back, she had placed it right on top of the pile. Astrila grabs the papers of the treaty and lays them out on the floor to examine closely. The treaty does give them the island, and some of the surrounding waters as well. It says that the only reason the island can be taken from them is if they sell it. Why would they sell it? They have everything they need here, on the island.

She glances over at her father. "Do you have a copy of this?"

He nods. "Yes. it's in one of my baskets. Do you want me to retrieve it?"

"No, we don't need it yet. But make sure that you know where it is. I wouldn't put it past the red man to try something sneaky. When we meet them after the storm, I want the original with me. They can see the copy."

"Why?"

"I'm just getting a feeling. From my magic, from the wind, I don't know. But I feel like he is going to try something."

"Very well. Do you have a plan?"

Astrila's brain spins as it pulls one together. "I have the beginnings of one. He tries something, I'll lead him to Seal Rock. The rock is the island's guardian, so if he means to harm, things won't end well."

He gapes at her. "How do you know that the rock is the guardian of the island? Almost no one knows that story. Kōri certainly doesn't and Tonraq would have no reason to tell you."

Astrila gives him a soft smile and taps one finger against her head. "My magic told me."

Her father sighs. "Of course it did. What did you see in the caves?"

"A natural pool of warm water, a little bubble of ice that lets you see beneath the ice covering the cove, and a room detailing the island's history. Did you know there is a prophecy written there?"

Kayi's eyes widen. "No, I didn't. What was it about?"

"It said something about a curse back in the old land, a power here that would help, and a blue flower that would come here, I think. There was something else, but Kōri wouldn't let me see it."

"Strange. I'll have to go see it soon." He frowns. "Go on, get back to your iglu before the storm hits."
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Did you like the way Astrila got the men to leave? What do you think is going to happen when they come back? Again, what do you think Kōri saw in the history room? What does the prophecy mean? Tell me your thoughts!

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~Goddess of Fate, signing out.