Redtail Rise Some Words with a Mummy

Her mouth opened, then shut. Masque wouldn’t press the point of their mother’s death. Redd seemed ready to drop it and move on to something else, based on the touches carrying mostly affection but a little bit of puzzlement too.

I don’t want to have pups, she thought again, more vehemently. She supposed she could confess as much to her sister, though Masque decided to just let it go for now. It wasn’t like she wanted to keep thinking about carrying and birthing young. A light shudder wracked her.

Still want to spar? Masquerade wondered, though before her sister could reply, she added, Oh, there’s something I wanted to show you, and, in fact, she couldn’t believe she’d nearly forgotten.

Motioning for Redd to walk alongside her, Masque began walking toward the north face of the rise. She stuck close to its foot, guiding her fellow Toweard into a deep copse of trees tucked against the natural curvature of the hillock. The pungent smell of moose urine made Masque glance at her sister. It reminded her of the mother and calf they’d stalked once, though it was different: powerfully masculine.

She faced forward and led Redd to the base of a tree, where she hunched her back and proceeded to claw at the leaf litter and soil underneath. She had only buried her find shallowly, so it wasn’t long before Masque unearthed several tines and then the entire span of a single shed Alces alces antler.