The Sunspire oh, what could i do to change your mind?

She was so busy with grumbling and grinding herself into the frosted dirt, that River missed the approach of another.

Sister.

The marlwolf flipped back onto her stomach, tense and vengeful at the sudden voice. She looked upon the immediately familiar figure of her brother, and it took her a beat to register what had been said. Her snarl fell away, replaced at first by relief, and then by a cold sense of dread.

Rather than greet him with the warmth and familiarity he might have come to expect of her, River rose to stand upon rigid legs, her body language uncertain. Did he know? Had he come to find her at Ketzia's behest? She only assumed the worse, causing her to frown at him. What are you doing here? she asked, half accusatory, half panic-stricken.