The Women of Hyoite (Zurna)

[Elapheesa]

Being a female Hyoite was at times intensely frustrating.  The males, not all but the vast majority, considered themselves to be superior warriors, hunters and fishermen.  The woman folk were enjoyed and valued as beautiful trinkets, objects of pleasure, home keepers and mothers but for some Hyoite females their use as wives and mothers was not enough.  The younger female Hyoites were particularly vulnerable to the lure of wanting a life of their own, adventure, freedom to explore and the opportunity to do their own hunting and gathering.  There was nothing worst in Elapheesa's opinion than being the taken-for-granted wife of a hunter who would leave you at behind to care for the homestead for months on end while he gathered fish, meat and furs to return home and expect to use or abuse you at will before leaving again.  Perhaps there were some more decent Hyoite males, the kind with muscular chests and soft hearts who genuinely loved their wives and children and who returned home to lavish them with love, tales of their adventures and honest admissions of how much they missed their families while away but then their wives normally ended up pregnant after each end of season hunt and were left with child, alone for many months pining for their absent husband and not knowing whether he was alive or not.  Either way there was far too much to suffer being a traditional wife and mother. This was not the life for Elapheesa.

Elapheesa praised herself for not having a family life.  She didn't know whether any of her family remained living.  She had no one to worry about, no one to please and no responsibility to any other living thing or person.  It was liberating.  She was free to do as she pleased.  Choose her life path and make decisions based on nothing but thought for herself and her own pleasure.  So she chose a hard life, a life plagued by danger and difficulty but one which gave her great satisfaction.  Elapheesa was a huntress.  She went out each season over the ice to find meat, preserve it and bring it back to sell to any offering a fair price.  Her life was nomadic.  The majority of her belongs strapped tight to her sledge and every night spent in a tent, mostly alone. 

Of course, there is no silver lining to any other way of life, not really. Whilst Elapheesa was free and  had no husband to suffer and no family to worry about, whether she admitted it or not her existence could be lonely and isolated which is why, every now and then after selling the meats she had brought back and the fish she had preserved she would linger a few days in Hyoite.  She would watch people pass by, visit a few merchants and consume food that was a little more pleasing than her usual diet of open fire cooked flesh.  In these days she met others interested in her way of life or with trade deals to present to her. Other times she met others whom held her interest and she would willingly enjoy their company a short while, not long enough to allow herself to become too fond though.  She didn't want any attachments because that would risk heart break if they were lost to her.  She guarded herself always.  A distraction of companionship for a short while was acceptable but any real friendships, any relationships where there was genuine feeling would only cause her worry or obligation and she wasn't ready to risk that. 

So it was she found herself in Hyoite again.  Her stock sold and a few days to relax and take in the sights and sounds of families and merchant stall holders at work.

[GoblinFae]

As the youngest of twenty-six siblings and the only daughter, Zurna Nali was no stranger to a life of hard work and responsibility. When the men left for the boats, the women and children continued to toil to keep the family thriving. They were always moving and always striving to make ends meet. Zurna did not quite know how they managed year after year with more and more mouths to feed. It must have been by the grace of manaia that they survived. Therefore she made sure without fail to give up her prayers and offerings up as often as possible without fail. Only extreme fever had ever managed to keep her from her rituals and even then she had still fought to do so in her delirium.

This morning was therefore no different. Long before the rays of first light lit up the sparkling snow, Zurna was up and out of bed in the cold offering her daily prayers of thanks for a new day before hurriedly going about her chores. She had to get to town today to purchase some supplies before they moved again. There was enough furs and even some of her brother's bone carvings left from the harshest parts of winter that she could trade for what she needed. Zurna just hoped it would be enough.

So with a stack of furs tied to her back and a small child's hand in each of hers, the young woman set out into the snow, her favorite nieces in tow. The trio made good time reaching the settled town of Hyoite in Zurna's mind. The little girls were only just managing to truly feel more awake and take in the sites around them. She was sure, come noon they would be right terrors if she had not made significant progress on her purchases.

Zurna unpacked her furs and set them on a patch frozen ground, letting the twins play and rest on them while she haggled with one of the vendors over the price of a new set of knives. It always aggravated her how some of the merchants tried to pull one over her because of her youthful features and gentle personality. They always demanded too high of a price and then would get angry when she refused to pay it. The young woman only hoped she could get through all this rather quickly though. An angry merchant and a pair of rambunctious children was the last thing she would need. There was still a lot that needed doing back home if she could make it back in time to help that is.

[Elapheesa]

A break from hunting and travelling the tundra alone allowed Elapheesa to mix with other humans and to engage in conversation, a rare treat.  She was often totally alone, except for the animals she hunted for months on end and only spoke to herself, aware that others might assume that a form of madness.  Her conversation here in Hyoite's market was not intellectual nor of any consequence in establishing friendships but it was light relief to her lonely soul.  She was too scared to have any real emotional ties to others lest losing them was too hard to bear but she was fascinated by the relationships of others here.  She loved watching families argue and bicker and yet love each other never-the-less.  She enjoyed watching them talk and even shout, touch roughly or tenderly and sometimes just gaze at each other with pride or care.  She would watch lovers kiss and suitors attempt to woo their desired future mates.  She watched fathers return to their families after months on the ice to find new babes in the arms of their women and she watched faces fill with tears as the men left once more.

She was consuming a hot beverage talking to a trader she knew well who had just bought her entire sledge of preserved meat and salted fish on ice when she saw the young woman struggle into the market with two young girls in tow and a stack of furs to sell.  Fascinated by this small group she watched them with interest after all this could perhaps have been her life instead of hunting.  She was unsure whether the young woman was mother to these children or another relative but to watch her fulfilling her family roll was intoxicating.  She had to move closer, hear them speak and enjoy the warmth of their smiles to each other.

[GoblinFae]

It was quiet Cara that first noticed the woman's approach and interest in their same family unit. Her aunt was still too busy trying not to lose her temper and her twin sister had her back to the woman, leaving Cara to observe silently for a few moments. There was nothing really special to hold the child's interest other than the approach and she soon lost interest in watching alone.

Aliyah was alerted and was instantly bounding off alone to "confront" this new individual she had never met before, despite her twin's fervent calls to stay put else Zurna take notice and they both get into trouble. Like most curious children though, Aliyah thought herself keen enough not to get in trouble and that the fulfillment of curiosity being met would outweigh the consequences of it being let to build.

Boldly and proudly, the child raced up to stand in front of the woman. "Good morning! Are you interested in buying something today? My family has some lovely carvings and warm furs to trade. Why I'm sure we have the finest there is. Come see, come see!"

While the more outgoing twin worked to draw the woman closer, shy Cara hopped from foot to foot behind her, pressing close into her sister's back to hide as she cast nervous glances behind them. "Aliyah we're gonna be in twouble! 'eave the woman awone and come back ober here," she practically hissed in what she thought was a quiet whisper.

"I wanna meet her," Aliyah whined back. "We never meet anyone new."

Cara muttered something back under her breath and tried to pull her sister back to their "nest" of furs. It would not be long before Zurna took notice that her nieces were not where she left them, as lines of frustration deeply creased her brow. Things were not going as well as she had hoped they would.