Great Bear Wilderness silence of siberia

9/4: Editing a narrative conclusion...

After nosing around in the debris on the forest floor a while, Junior did not find what she was looking for and sighed as she dropped onto her haunches. She bent her neck to the left and right, working out a bit of a crick. As she did so, she noticed the blackbird still sitting in the treetop a dozen yards behind her. There was an owl across from it now. Junior's eyes lingered curiously on the large raptor, though she did not recognize Aryn from their brief encounter in her infancy.

Then the blackbird turned to look at her and clacked its beak, only this time Junior made out words. Mismatched eyes blinked in surprise and the pup took a few steps back toward the trees where the birds perched. It made her neck ache but she bent her head back to maintain visual contact.

"Uh," she said, not sure how to react to the speaking bird. "What?" Without waiting for an answer, she shook her head and continued plodding through the woods. She would eventually return to her berries but, for now, she was unwilling to give up on finding that perfect leaf.