It had been many years since U’ilani last visited the riverlands. Their mother’s letters had become sparse over the years and while U’ilani’s father worried over them they didn’t seem as concerned. Kusa kept in contact as much as she could, expressing her desire to see the child the pair created whenever it was possible, and that was that. She never was one for useless chatter so U’ilani had decided to travel from their home to see her.

Mingling with the Kaha’iko had always been difficult. Their mother’s people were far more elegant than the Kawena they’d grown up alongside and resembled moon fish with their iridescent forms. Kusa herself looked as beautiful now as she ever could have in her youth and seemed to glide along the land beside her offspring. In opposition U’ilani kept an almost dangerous look to them, clearly far more experience with a weapon than any of Kusa’s friends, and meetings with their own children were awkward at best. Meetings were set in place to better acclimate U’ilani to live in their clan, at least for a while, when rumors of legendary beings started to circulate.

“Gaspar returned not two moons ago with antennae like the river weeds,” a voice murmured around a fresh sweet cake. U’ilani hadn’t cared to pick up on their name; the teen was a pudgy, soft thing that would no doubt be killed on their first hunt anyway. Much to their dismay U’ilani had been related to a special room with the other “children” while the adults chatted about nonsensical things. As far as they were concerned, they were far too old to be here. How many of the so called “adults” had been part of hunts to take down prey twice their size?

“Mama says he just stuck it to his head with honey-“

“They’re real! I saw them myself!” When the pudgy kid grew indignant they sprayed the table with a fine layer of crumpled cake. U’ilani turned to them then and leveled a glare their way. It was enough to bring a layer of flush to their cheeks. “It-t-t’s true though….they were real…Just like an Aishans.”

“Do you think he visited the Noelani springs? Is that how it happened?”

“No one can say! The guards never saw him come near and his family said he went south so I’m not sure what happened.”

Antennae like an Aishan? Passively, U’ilani leaned back in their seat and picked at the etchings around the window frame. He’d met one recently, an Elidae, and imagining one of their kind with antennae like that was certainly odd to say the least. What sort of a blessing was that? Did it help in the hunt? Or was it just an oddity for decoration?

“Hey, U’ilani.” Turning back toward the group, they noticed a smaller Kaha’iko edging closer. “Have they talked about stuff like this where you’re from?”
“Iokaila may bless some, but we know it to be stories; nothing more. There have been tales of Kawena whose horns grew long enough to pierce the hide of great beasts and others who grew more horns to defend themselves.” Shrugging their shoulders, they leaned further onto the window frame. “It’s just stories, though.”

“But you don’t know that!” The little one turned toward the others, and bounced a little, their eyes bright upon hearing U’ilani’s tales. “I think it would be cool if your horn grew! And if I had antennae then I could always know where bugs are-“

“That’s not how they work, Iko-“

“Shut up, Marsa.”

“You do realize that none of you are ever going to be blessed, right?” U’ilani had heard enough. There was only so much gossip and prattle they could listen to without wanting to bash their head into the wall. When did it end? Was this all they had to look forward too over the next couple of months? “All you do is sit around painting pictures, dressing up, and stuffing your face. Everyone of those people who get to be special actually did something.”

“Yeah, well,” pastry boy grumbled, “You’re here too.”

“For a little while, but after a few weeks I’ll be gone.”

After that they weren’t as keen to include them in conversation, but U’ilani wasn’t bothered by it. It was just a bunch of talk, right? Gaspar might have just acquired some sort of weird growth that he was passing off as special. Maybe one day it would make him sick and he’d die of it, then what kind of blessing would that be?

[760]