Sunbeam Lair already choking on my pride

The yearling’s shoulders visibly sagged when the woman assured her that she was not a bother, her posture changing from one which had been tense and rigid, to one entirely more relaxed. The frown which had been pinching at her brow softened too as she dared a small step closer. Only now did her eyes stray away from the stranger as she sought to distinguish the features of the cave, noticing how far back the chasm cut into the mountain stone, the small pockets of light which filtered down through the crumbling walls, and the plants which bathed beneath it.

Bright amber gaze returned to the marred face of the woman who lingered before her, pale ears pricking in acknowledgement to the question directed toward her. Charcoal lips pursed together as she deliberated over her answer. “Hard…tiresome.” Isolde admitted with a heavy sigh, her naivety showing through. “It’s tough not having a warm den to return home to, but instead having to flee from one place to the next.” Her brows pinched together again as her gaze dropped to stare at the floor, and then at the cave around them, not wanting to maintain eye contact for fear of the judging stare that might look back at her.

Her mother had warned her how harsh the world outside a pack could be, had insisted countless times that she stay and help look after their growing family. Isolde had accused her of scaremongering, had declared that she would not remain alongside her siblings as yet another caregiver to her parents newest litter. The headstrong yearling had wanted more from life, but now as her eyes danced about the gloom of the cave, she wandered what more the world really had to offer her.

She focused back on the stranger, eager distract herself from her own sombre thoughts. “You must be local to these parts, or at least familiar with them?” Isolde asked, curious how she knew of the plants which persisted through the winter inside the cave.