The Hawkmother

Chapter Eleven: Those Blooming Roses

When Nibbles awoke, she was terrified to find that she was alone. Surely Jareth wouldn't have gone anywhere without telling her first, and he hadn't woken her up. In fact, the fact she didn't wake up throughout the night was strange on its own. Nibbles was a light sleeper, and she usually woke up when someone was even close to them.

But not last night. Not when her brother apparently needed her the most. Her sword and haversack were untouched. The only thing out of place was her missing brother, and strange tracks surrounding the makeshift campsite.

For the first time since they had left home, Nibbles allowed herself to weep. Burying her face in her paws, she allowed the tears to fall freely, chest heaving with great sobs.

So caught up in her grief was Nibbles that she did not hear the approaching cart. In fact, she was so wrapped in emotion she did not know she was no longer alone until a voice spoke to her. "Oh, dear small one, why do you weep so?" The voice was kind and old, and when Nibbles looked up she found herself staring into the eyes of a great white wolf.

"You're Snowdrift," she said, wiping her nose on the sleeve of her tunic. "Roilback told me about you."

"Our reputation precedes us again, my darlings," she called to the cart. A larger wolf stepped from behind, all black except a smattering of white on his chin and across his chest. "Shadowcoin, come look at these tracks>"

Her son came over to the blanket Nibbles sat upon, inspecting the ground. He walked around for a short bit, before turning to the direction of the cart. "Oz, Tormund, come take a look at these, will you?"

From the card sprung two wolverines so identical that Nibbles could not tell them apart. "Looks like lizard to me," said one.

"The other dropped to his belly in the mud to get a closer look. "Yeh, def'nitely lizards."

"Ozdiperian, you get out of the mud this instant or you can help Bartholomew pull the cart the rest of the way to Rockago," Snowdrift chastised. "Now, little mouse, why the tears?"

"They took my brother, and now I'm all alone!" She wailed, fresh tears starting. "We came all this way from Dawnmarsh to save her, I can't do it on my own!"

"You're a long way from home, indeed. Tell me, what's your name?"

"Nibbles, ma'am."

"Shadowcoin, do you suppose we could get Nibbles' brother back while we're in the area?"

"It should be easy enough. The lizards aren't smart. It's just a matter of finding them in this hellscape. Which shouldn't be too hard with all the tracks they've left behind."

"Mind your tongue," Snowdrift reminded him. He rolled his eyes, but obliged his mother all the same.

"I could fight a few lizards," a large otter said. He was nowhere near as large as Asteria, though he was more muscular.

"You? Pish. You just like showing off, Tomblin," a squirrel said from atop the cart.

"You've got no room to talk, Chrysanthemum. You're always showing off and futtering your lashes," the otter retorted, though there was nothing mean about his tone.

Nibbles got the distinct impression that these motley creatures were a family. Maybe as close to a true family as one could get without being related. It was then she realized she had that sort of family herself. Sure, she and Jareth didn't always get along, and they weren't really hawks, but she loved her family all the same. And maybe that was just as good as knowing where you came from or where you wanted to go. Knowing that no matter where you had been, your family would be there to love you through it all.