The Sunspire and nothing breaks like a heart

Her song faded—one second, two seconds. The silence stretched from heart-wrenching seconds to at least a minute, and she felt the quake of grief pull at her. Thorn was simply gone—there would be no denying it, and she could not believe the loyal wolf had left without a goodbye. Something had happened—and the towering mountains had hidden the mystery of his disappearance well.

The response she longed for was not what she received—a cocky voice rang out, causing her to pause in stolen hope for a moment, before realizing she absolutely did not recognize the other. A frown clouded her features momentarily before replaced with considered calculation.

Chuffing in gentle annoyance to herself, the slender dove began to seek out the rather brazen creature that goaded her.