Though the girl apologized, she simply continued with the asinine chatter. Chitsa remained silent, still listening — albeit without interest — as the child started to tell her life story. It wasn't until facts came to light regarding the white wolf's mother that the woman glanced back. Disgust crept into her features, not because of what she was told, but because the Etikaele Gata suffered from tradition taboo — she was a mateless mother. Oh, it may not have been the fault of Ralla that whatever man she'd been with (Chitsa had not heard of one as of yet) had simply disappeared, but that fact did not matter to the Fire Tender. It was shameful to hold such a life, and left Chitsa in an uncomfortable position; as the Master Fire Tender, she was forced to show respect to the Etikaele Gata, but these facts made her ill to think of such a thing.
Her jaw set firmly and she returned to her work. "Didn't I just tell you that what other people do has no bearing on me? Idiocy is not a charming trait, little girl. If you can't realize that not all people are the same at your age, then you should spend more time learning from your...mother." She didn't understand why it was so hard to realize that nothing was simply going to make the Fire Tender appreciate annoying questions. Dawali was far more lenient than she, a father himself, but she had no time for ramblings of young people. And she certainly did not want help if that was all it would consist of. "No, I don't need help. Until you can learn not to ask questions, I want no company from you." She turned away towards the forest, running fingers through her hair in agitation. After a moment, she paused. "You could learn from my niece, Sakari; she's a smart, respectful girl." And with that, she found herself wandering toward the woods.
Image courtesy of fras@Flickr; table by the Mentors!
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