Redtail Rise And I felt his blood pour fast and hot,

He'd kept to the fringes following his acceptance, watchful of the comings and the goings of the pack. He was an outsider looking in. More than once, he caught @Masquerade's tracks as they braided across the taiga. The only thing that stayed his impulse in trailing them was the pain in his paw.

Over the next few days the splinter subsided; at last, this morning, he felt he could run confidently -- though occasionally, the hard ground forced a wince from him.

A cool wind prevailed in the settling trees. Riley watched the sienna leaves as they shivered overhead. Some left the aegis of their bough, fluttering down one by one into the ushering of fall.