Matoaka lives in harmony with nature. She's surrounded by people who love her -- her grandmother, her wolf mother, and her shrine maiden girlfriend. Nothing could be more idyllic.
But a bump on the head soon leads Matoaka to question why her past seems to be nothing but a hazy, half-forgotten memory. And when a group of girls rescued from a place known simply as the Palace arrives, Matoaka's curiosity only increases.
A sudden flash of remembering leads Matoaka to a choice. Will she continue working to uncover her lost memories, or will she simply wish to forget them again? And what if the things she remembers don't fit with the idyllic life she's come to know? Will Matoaka give up or will she fight back?
Join Matoaka and her found family of shrine maidens and wolves as they embark on an amazing adventure of girl power, self-discovery, and resistance.
“Chihiro?”
“Yes?”
“The wolf howling in the night,” said Matoaka. “That was my mother. I’d recognize her anywhere.”
“Yes,” said Chihiro.
“My wolf mother no longer looks after children. She keeps watch now. On the bluff.”
“Yes.”
“And there’s a new girl down in the lodge with Grandmother tonight. I don’t mean the three new girls who came here with you, on horseback. This girl. The one who’s crying. She wasn’t with you, was she?”
“She was not.”
“Where did she come from?” asked Matoaka.
Chihiro dipped her head and puckered her lips. She laid a series of three kisses in a neat line down the back of Matoaka’s neck. “We can talk about it in the morning,” said Chihiro, planting a fourth and final kiss. “Are you warm enough?”
“I’m always warm enough when I’m with you,” said Matoaka. “I might not remember everything about how we met, and the nights I’ve spent in your arms, but I know enough to realize you would keep me warm.”
Behind Matoaka, Chihiro let out a soft sigh and felt around under the blankets until she found Matoaka’s hand to weave their fingers together. Chihiro puckered up to lay another kiss on Matoaka’s neck.
“I also know enough to realize when you’re deflecting my questions with kisses. Not that I mind your kisses.” Matoaka pulled her hand from Chihiro’s and rolled onto her back to look up at her.
“Your lips are soft, and your arms are strong.” Matoaka curled her fingers around Chihiro’s shoulder and followed with her eyes as she trailed her hand down to Chihiro’s elbow. “But you’re avoiding my question.”
“What question is that, my sweet flower?”
“The girl,” said Matoaka, fixing her gaze on Chihiro’s eyes. “Where did she come from?”
Chihiro sighed and felt around under the blankets once again, until she had Matoaka’s fingers wrapped up in her own. “The girl was found wandering on the plain of the tallgrass prairie. This is why your wolf mother keeps watch, and the other wolf mothers as well from atop the bluffs where they make their dens. When a girl is alone and afraid, the old mothers can smell it on the wind. They call out so the girl can be found and brought home.”
“But I’ve never seen this girl before.”
“No. You wouldn’t.”
“Did I forget about her, like I forgot about you?”
“No,” said Chihiro. “She’s never been here before.”
“But she’s one of The People?”
“Of course she is,” said Chihiro. “She was born of Mother Earth, just like you. She just got lost.”
“Lost?”
Chihiro reached out to brush her fingers against Matoaka’s hair, tucking a wayward strand behind Matoaka’s ear. “Are you sure you don’t want to sleep, my lovely flower?”
Matoaka shook her head.
Chihiro continued. “Sometimes girls get lost on their way home and they need a little help.”
“From the wolf mothers keeping watch?”
Chihiro nodded. “And from us, the shrine maidens, with our swift horses.”
Matoaka looked into Chihiro’s eyes. “That’s why you were gone when I woke up? You were helping?”
“Yes. We can get to the girls quickly.”
Matoaka reached out to grip Chihiro’s bare shoulder. “If I were lost?” asked Matoaka, trailing her hand down over the curve of Chihiro’s bicep to rest there, just above Chihiro’s elbow. “If I were lost, would you ride out to bring me home?”
“Of course I would.”
“Because you’re a shrine maiden? And it’s your duty?”
Again, Chihiro nodded. “Because I would want to see you home and safe.”
