Golden Glade sky fire above, ice below the hearth

As disappointing as it was to hear that his family was upset with him, Raven felt relieved that she wasn’t the only one dealing with an angry pack. What few weren’t angry seemed apathetic at best. To Raven, the plateau was little more than a piece of land. It was the pack itself that was important to her, not the ground upon which they stood. But maybe she’d been inoculated against the grief of homesickness already — when Towhee had led them away from the caldera — whereas her own, particularly her children, were experiencing this for the first time.

She felt confident, though, that they would all come to accept it with time, maybe even enjoy their new surroundings. She knew she certainly wouldn’t miss the bare exposure of the plateau in the freezing months of winter.

She saw the crevice in the stone at the same time he did, and shook her head in response to his question. She couldn’t remember ever seeing any sort of caves back at the caldera. ”Let’s check this out!” As she stepped into the cave’s entrance, cold water pattering down onto her nape from the rocks above, she looked around and was intrigued to see what looked like tunnels in the shadows ahead.