Riddle Heights First Steps

<blockquote>Niara, <i>Big Eyes...</i> she smirked to herself, at least her name didn’t mean ‘golden’ like her little brothers did. Speaking of Kanosak, she had lost his scent months ago, around the same time she lost little Aniu, leaving only Chulyin back with their birth pack. The black brute was needed, other packs were moving in on the land her grandparents had claimed, and they needed brawlers, not brains.

She surveyed the snow covered valley below from her perch up in the mountains. It had potential... Maybe here she would find someone strong enough to make her complete, or even a pack where she could have a purpose. Either way, she doubted staying in the hills would find her either. Her tawny hide whipped around her in the wind and she grimaced. Her coat had never been the same since she left her home, picking up matts and burrs and knots along the way.

She still looked to be of a reasonable weight but under all that fur was very little fat on her bones, it had all been burned away and reduced to sinewy muscle. Her endurance and strength had improved by leaps and bounds but her speed suffered as a result. <i>No use in pondering on the past when the future is clearly down there...</i></blockquote>