Emberwood dream a little dream (of me!)

Maiira had been all but nonexistent in the pack since its founding. Actually, that was because she’d been wandering far and wide in the areas surrounding the Emberwood. She had not lived in a pack since she’d left her mother at a young age, and even then, that “pack” had consisted of merely herself, her mother, and her few siblings. It had been nothing like this. She had to admit to herself—which was difficult—that she found being around so many others at once a bit intimidating. Not downright frightening, of course, for who were they but a bunch of mangy wolves? They did not frighten her, and so far, no one had given her trouble for her half-breed status. But…

She hummed and skipped along the ground as she went, partly because that was who she was, and partly to keep to keep herself warm in these frigid temperatures. Maiira had roamed far and wide, but she was not used to snow. She’d lived much farther down the coast in a place that never snowed and was quite a bit warmer and more humid in general, even in winter. This beautiful frosty cold was foreign and… deadly.

Her eyes caught the sight of another, sitting alone and seemingly frozen, like a statue. Maiira stopped, and also stopped herself from calling out to the woman. On a day like this, at a hushed moment like this, with snow falling around them, she did not wish to break the spell by speaking.