Sunbeam Lair Live like an Animal, Die like an Animal

From beneath a great opening in the ceiling overhead she’d gazed up at the dreary sky, watching as flakes of varying sizes drifted down around her. No matter how sheltered of a home she’d chosen, never had they been immune to the effects of nature. Still did the snow sweep across the land underfoot, as did the rivers and streams flood whenever the rain poured down. Whilst the inability to avoid that which came naturally to the world around them could at times be problematic, there was also a sort of beauty to it. The flora grew, flowers blooming all around, and then everything was cleared away and replaced by death, only for it all to later be reborn again. The cycle continued without the assistance of any wolf, and would continue long after she had died. It was that beauty, the magic in it all, that amazed her. And as her eyes had fluttered shut and she’d lifted her face up towards the clouds, she could have sworn that she’d felt that very same magic electrifying the air around her. Then, in a matter of seconds, it had vanished.

Dragged back into the present by the voice of another, she’d glanced around and settled her mind. Curious, and knowing that she could not outright ignore a request for an audience, she’d picked herself up and began heading towards the cavern’s entrance. She’d been moving at a moderate pace, neither too fast nor too slow, until another howl had been carried towards her by the wind. Troubled by the lack of patience—for she’d assumed the urgency to mean that something drastic was occurring—she’d increased her speed and stopped for nothing. Worn paths felt her paws skim across them just like they had so many times prior, her legs propelling her forward until she’d been able to see the wolf whose voice had summoned her—Avannon, and with her an unknown male.

Asterr slowed to a stop, her gaze jumping from the man to the member of her tribe as she silently assessed the atmosphere. It would have been easy to assume that the man had wished to join them, if not for how tense everything seemed to be. Even the winds had appeared to have ceased all movements, shying away from the duo as if some battle might soon break out. The overall lack of peace unsettled her, then drew her attention towards the other woman as her features hardened. As she’d considered all of the possibilities, the idea that the stranger might be dangerous had crossed her mind and awoken her maternal instincts. It’d taken every ounce of her strength to keep from jumping to conclusions and then acting upon them, for nature reigned when it came to a mother and her children. Somehow she had managed to relax, though, and then said, “Explain,” whilst staring at Avannon. Whatever details she had, the Chieftess wished to hear them.