Bramblepoint Southstar.

Her answer totally reminded me of this song. :)

She felt something within her relax at Ceridwen’s reassurance. She’d learned some lessons out there, but not necessarily the hard way, and Towhee was glad of that. She realized that she thought of Dwin like another daughter, or perhaps granddaughter. She felt protective of her and only wanted good things to happen to her… though the Redhawk also knew that wasn’t really how the world worked.

Wise words, Towhee said, her ears folding backward a bit at the followup question. We tried to hold down the fort after they left but then the others started leaving, one by one. They’ve been gone so long, I’m not sure they’re still planning on coming back. And at some point, it wasn’t fair to expect us to hold out any longer. It’s too quiet over there.

She thought of Reyson and Meadow, how the situation—how Towhee herself—had really let them down. Towhee still hoped they could claim the copse for themselves and enjoy homesteading there. But she also wouldn’t be surprised if they disliked the isolation too. The hinterlands were a ghost town these days.

I’m not entirely on my own though, Towhee admitted. I have a travel buddy these days.