Dahozhoni Meadow Eagles and butterflies.

The idle solitude didn’t suit her very well, not after weeks of looking after children (including grown ones) around the clock. She did enjoy a good night’s uninterrupted sleep, as well as the few visitors that trickled down the mountain to see her. Towhee particularly enjoyed Meerkat’s tale of a recent adventure in the lowlands.

The what now? Towhee queried, officially intrigued.

After her daughter explained what and where she meant, then excused herself back to the village, Towhee set off to the south. She wouldn’t be gone long. She just wanted to see this cenote for herself and stretch her legs. And though she intended to stick around for Sialuk, this was part of her new drifter’s lifestyle: she could go where she pleased, when she pleased, without even having to tell anyone.

As soon as she set foot in Dahozhoni Meadow, the novelty of it all wore off almost immediately. This place reminded her of the arid steppes where she’d been bitten by a snake. Towhee halted and looked warily at the ground, though there were no coiled serpents with venomous fangs, unless they were hidden among the superbloom.

She supposed that was definitely possible, though her wariness wore off too. Carefully, Towhee stepped among the desert wildflowers, enjoying their perfume on the dry July breeze.