"Gaho?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine."
"No,wait- Kajika can't remember that big canyon. You know, right? The one that was so big that thousands of canoes could stack up there!" Gaho bit her lip worriedly.
His skin turning pale and purple eyes could be explained away, but to forget things was bad. He stared up at her with tears swimming in said eyes, and clung to Matoskah.
"Gaho…I don't want to forget things." Kajika whimpered.
She was at a loss for words, and sat against an old tree. Kajika crawled onto her lap like when he was little (he was still little, she realized with a jolt) and buried his face into her skirts. Helaku did the same, both twins bawling their eyes out at the fear they subjected themselves to, every time Gaho had to go and try to make contact with tribes but coming back with fresh scars and bruises. They cried for Kajika's loss of memory.
But most of all, they cried because they were still too young to know what else to do.
The younger twin continued to lose memories. He forgot the great sandy red deserts, the pleasant lap of water against the shores of beaches, and he forgot the rippling grass plains.
"Gaho, why are you hurt?" he asked once, big eyes wide at her wounds.
"It's that demon, sucking my lands dry." she spat.
"Who is that demon?" he asked.
"He's…" she was at a loss for words. Helaku impatiently nudged his twin.
"The one who tried to take me away! And then Matoskah hid us and-"
Kajika looked sad. "I can't remember."
"Gaho, Gaho!" She turned. Kajika was there. His skin was pale. His eyes were purple. His hair was blond. He was followed by the bear.
"I can understand France!" he said excitedly. "Did I used to know him?"
Dread.
Hurt.
Gaho was struck by these two emotions. Kajika wasn't hers. Not anymore. He was France's. That was why he lost memories. His lands were claimed and so he must reform.
Soon, he would not remember her. He'd look at her and say things like kes kelladi and stare with uncaring eyes at her with incomprehension when she talked to her.
She had to do something before then.
She had to.
Gaho went into the town. She purchased a fine white nightgown for a child and a pink ribbon and something else that Kajika interpreted as a loincloth, only for children. It was poofy and white.
She dressed Kajika in these things.
He asked why.
She couldn't say anything.
"Don't let him forget. When the time is right, bring him back to me." whispered Gaho.
Matoskah nodded.
France walked through the snow to his wooden shack. He was amazed at how much game he was able to procure on one hunting expedition.
Then he came across a small bear.
The white bear was sitting squarely in front of him, beady black eyes trained on his face. When he tried to go out of its way, it shifted until it blocked his path again. France decided to step over him. It was tiny, right?
The bear didn't do anything up until he stretched a leg over his head. Then he sprang for his boot, sending France sprawling into the snow.
When he rolled over, intending to give the bear cub a what-for, he saw the bear sitting serenely in front of his nose. It blinked innocently at him.
That did it.
France shed all his kills and took off running after the bear, which had wised up and tried to flee. France stumbled and thrashed his way through the thick snow and weaved around pines, hell-bent on teaching a small bear that no-one duped the great France.
As soon as he pieced together why he was chasing a polar bear, Francis concluded that spending time alone was turning him stir-crazy.
Matoskah led the moonface through countless trees and plains and doubling back, giving Gaho and Helaku enough time to say goodbye to Kajika.
Faced with Kajika-this transformed Kajika- she was at a loss for words. She knew it was only a few minutes before Matoskah made it here. She wanted to impart all her love and wisdom and motherliness in a few minutes when it should've been over centuries.
In the end, she cradled his small head in her hands and kissed his smooth white brow.
"Goodbye." She whispered, wrapping her arms around the boy in the last embrace she'd ever have with him. Helaku joined in, crying. He touched foreheads with Kajika, and they both seemed to say something in the brief moment their eyes met.
"Goodbye." choked out Helaku.
"Au revoir." Kajika said. Two words that stuck in Helaku and Gaho's hearts, hurting.
"Do you still know who we are?" asked Gaho softly. She pulled away and placed her hands on Helaku's shoulders.
Canada tipped his head to one side quizzically. "Désolée. Je ne comprend pas."
Matoskah burst into the clearing, and scanned the area. No sign of Gaho and her son. Then he ran to Canada's side, and nuzzled his nose with the boy's.
Canada giggled. He buried his face into his soft white fur and climbed onto his back.
France barreled into the clearing.
"Where are you, you stupid bear?" France gritted his teeth. Said bear stepped out of the shadows, the boy on his back.
France was dumbfounded.
"Canada?" he said incredulously. Here was the boy that he'd seen a few years ago, but then he'd been significantly darker, and had black hair. Now…now…
The child shivered from the cold. France wasn't new to the 'raising children' thing, and he immediately scooped up Canada.
Upon closer inspection, he saw that the boy's lips were blue with cold.
He started to run.
Gaho watched silently as France ran into his wooden shack and let Matoskah in. Helaku, still red-eyed, was in her arms and he turned away from the shack.
"Don't let me become that." he sniffled into her ear.
"I won't."
She turned and walked away.
This was why I had to break up the chapter. It's a direct continuity from the last one, so...yeah.
I think you all know what's coming next chapter.