It's not supposed to snow in the South Forest, but the weather in the second-emptiest corner of Shelha is not the only thing behaving strangely. When an ex-tyrant started acting up again, Sethral had hoped it meant the end of lazy days and monotonou...
Thank Shelha, the rain let up by morning. Kastar skidded in the wet grass as the Coppertails made their way to an icemelt pond. The sun had pushed above the horizon, but it failed to dispel the mist that clung to the hills. The sky's blue was a chilly shade.
The linger at the pond was longer than usual.
"What are we waiting for?" said someone, drawing uneasy laughter.
"A miracle," said another.
"Our scouts said Winter and her pack haven't crossed the river yet," said Kastar.
"Why can't we wait?"
Kastar pointed to the northern horizon. Its clouds were smeared with a sickly colour.
"Snow," was among the quiet murmurs.
Rose shook herself and stepped away from the water. "Has everyone eaten?"
Those who had been able to stomach food nodded. The herd started to run south.
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"They're there."
Breaths caught as Ice dropped back into the hollow. Her younger sister crept to her side and pressed against it. Ahead was the only North River gorge crossing within a half moon's distance.
"She knew we were coming," said Comet, a fiery young female and one of the twins' best friends.
"Ice, how many?" said Kastar.
"Only three. The rest are probably out hunting."
"Because there's no prey," said Comet, rolling her eyes. "Meaning she's there just to try and catch us. Like she's been doing all damn year."
"We all know that, Comet!" snapped Ice. "Have you noticed that nobody's denied your stupid theory since last River Moon?"
"You just called it stupid! I like how you can say you believe me now that Winter's acting weird, then diss me again in the same sentence!"
"Stop," said Kastar. "Elm, how does it look?"
The tall female had taken Ice's place on the rise. "Winter's not there and one of the others just left. If we make a break for it now, most of us should be able to make it."
Kastar exchanged a nod with Rose, and the herd broke cover. Kastar flashed a signal to fan out. It took heartbeats for the Mountainair pack—Coppertail-like but twice Rose's size—to realize what was going on. Creatures yelled alarms. Rose and her partner reached the gorge at a dead sprint. Their long Highlanders' kicks ripped through the Mountainairs' defenses, and the path down to the crossing opened. Kastar bolted under a Mountainair's nose. She took the bait and the rest of the herd converged. They came in from every direction. Coppertails ducked bites, kicks and tailswipes, and dashed between their enemies. At the path's bottom, the gorge narrowed enough to leap.
