#quillifluous

[quillifluous]

anfractuously

winding or circuitous

The teal lake was entirely still, lit only by a fistful of nosey stars and a single candle, held aloft aboard the frontmost of the three small vessels that were rowing anfractuously towards Jökki.

[quillifluous]

bilboes

an iron bar with sliding shackles, used to fasten prisoners’ ankles

Skyra heard the painful clanking of the bilboes before she saw the squabble of dishevelled urchins appear in the distance.

[quillifluous]

capernoited

slightly intoxicated or tipsy

Jökki took the sharp knife to his palm, drawing it firmly across the tough skin and letting five thick drops of his capernoited blood fall in to the lake.

[quillifluous]

selcouth

strange, unusual, rare, marvellous, wondrous, unfamiliar

Skyra shuffled closer to Gunki and held the older woman’s arm, watching intently in the selcouth darkness as her father folded to one knee and dipped his goblet into the shallows.

[quillifluous]

bulwark

a wall of earth built for defense

Arne silently climbed the bulwark that separated Jökki's home from the conspicuously still lake, hoping to be the first to catch a glimpse. It wouldn't be long now.

[quillifluous]

atavistic

revering something ancient or ancestral

The evening came surprisingly early for everyone stood before the shore except Jökki. He did not wear the tunic of his ancestors, and his fingers remained free of the traditional rings, but there was an atavistic pride in his stance as he waited.

[quillifluous]

firtle

to mess around and waste time; to look like you're doing something, when in reality you are actually just faffing about

Jökki's steady pace did not change as he made for the small smokehouse out back. There were only a handful of tasks left for him to do before the sun set; as long as he didn't firtle about he'd be left with plenty of time to spare.

[quillifluous]

loquacious

talkative; fond of talking; excessively talking

The intense silence that haunted her father’s home deep in the taiga unnerved Skyra deeply. She’d never been what one could call loquacious, but something about the trees and the unnatural patterns that creaked through their bark made her garble even the smallest thoughts she had out loud, desperate to engage Gunki in conversation.