Chapter Twelve
Helm was perched most uncomfortably in the topmost branches of a bloodwood tree, with Rasti tucked against him in the carrying sling that Jana had made for Feather back in Newkeep. Back in those weeks when they had all been busy and content, working alongside the makers of the new settlement. The better settlement. The one with a true community. The one without the Temple.
The one where he wished he could be, just at this moment.
Rasti whined and he ran one hand over her skull, feeling her skin furrowed in worry. ‘Quiet now,’ he mindsent. ‘Quiet and still.’
Below them, a pair of half-starved ursini quartered the ground, picking up and putting down their huge shaggy paws with a single-minded deliberation that was setting his teeth on edge. The ursini looked confused, as w
