Bramblepoint Sunblind

A thin and whittled ear would sweep towards the russet man, belying the hunter's interest. He was emotive if you knew where to look for it.

Perhaps he's been taken, he suggested. I know many who have been taken away by bad people.

Where he had grown up, it had been lawless. Khenbish knew little of pack life, but he did not fault pack wolves either. He did not think himself more cunning or resourceful for being so stubbornly independent - he simply had no need nor want to jump between the rungs of social ladders. Family was all that mattered, and he had no family now.

That is why my name is Khenbish. It means nobody. Discourages bandits and criminals, even evil spirits. This was why he had spent his childhood with girls and boys who had names like sheepskin, not-this-one, or simply dog. A clever trick. He mused, and flashed a quick smile, only visible to hummingbirds and their insane rhythms.