Big Salmon Lake guilty 'cause i should be home, damn procrastination

Winter was one of the worst times to search for treasure, Magpie had come to decide. She was born on the solstice— the longest night of the year, according to the Corvidae— and this was the first winter she would be old enough to remember. Her trinkets were easier to find in the bright, luscious spring and summer, and even in the dying autumn. Everything worth adding to her caches was buried beneath snow or frozen in the earth. Worse, the cold meant it was dangerous to go after certain treasure; a dip in the cold waters of a lake, for example, could mean death.

That made her treasure hunting more exciting.

The lake's shoreline was frozen, but Magpie had learned that with some patience, she could dig beneath the ice to get at her prize, or jump on it until the ice cracked. Then, she would be able to carry the piece of ice containing whatever it was that she was after. It was odd, perhaps, for a yearling— but treasure hunting kept her curiosity alive and fostered her skills in problem solving.

So far, her search proved to be fruitless. Still, Magpie combed the shore, green eyes intent on the stones and other objects caught in the glassy ice, analyzing each for whatever requirements that would deem it worthy of her collection. Focused on her task, and upwind of the stranger that approached, the yearling didn't yet realize that she was no longer alone.