this castle of glass

Bitterness and hurt gnawed at the pale woman in a way it never had before. She had suffered loss before, terrible loss when her family pack had been destroyed. She'd thought she'd lost Flamesong too, to the earthquake perhaps, but then she'd learned otherwise. She had not lost him. Her grieving had been meaningless. He had simply abandoned her, left her without a word. For all his gentle manner, for all the way he'd treated her, the whole time he had not truly loved her. Then he had returned and thought to take up where he had left off, as though she would have just been waiting with bated breath like a silly girl for his return and nothing had changed. She felt used, betrayed, and she knew whose fault that was.

Hers.

She'd been a fool to think that anyone could feel deeply about her. To think anyone could want her as a mate. To think... well, it didn't matter anyway. But she had come down here to get away from the pack for a little while, to not be reminded of her own stupidity for a little while.

And it wasn't terrible. Spring would be here soon, she could smell it even here in the north. It was something to look forward to. Still as she reclined on the shore with her muzzle on her paws, she stared into the frozen water broodingly. It didn't seem like it would come fast enough.



speech.