2/24/2026, 7:24 AM
![[Image: de30rbh-3b0683a6-441b-43e3-821f-97de2c91...kDaKDynxTk]](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/9de0281f-9de0-407a-a8c3-cff68eced06b/de30rbh-3b0683a6-441b-43e3-821f-97de2c917037.gif?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiIvZi85ZGUwMjgxZi05ZGUwLTQwN2EtYThjMy1jZmY2OGVjZWQwNmIvZGUzMHJiaC0zYjA2ODNhNi00NDFiLTQzZTMtODIxZi05N2RlMmM5MTcwMzcuZ2lmIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.X3AR7ztue9yyAPqjXnKt7hzjl9ocfI1zPkDaKDynxTk)
she had not been sleeping well since the pink fire. it came in fits—short, jagged stretches where her body finally slipped under, only to jolt back up as if something had bitten her spine. sivra would not come to her, and the heat never quite left her. it sat low in her belly and along the insides of her thighs like a hot coal that refused to cool, even in snow.
ahead: a slope down toward an open stretch, split only by rushing water. and there—his outline, broad and prowling. of all the wolves she could've encountered this morning, she had been hopeful it would not be him.
her first instinct now was to turn away, but the feverish twist in her gut had opinions about that, and none of them involved compliance to her mind. her feet betrayed her long before better judgment could catch up. she stops a safe distance off his flank—close enough for conversation, far enough that she couldn’t blame proximity if she did something stupid.
his scent hits the back of her throat and stays there, and she has to clamp down on her jaw to stop the small, traitorous noise trying to crawl free.
you are up early,she mused, flat as she could manage.
