Chapter 40

Coo'ara shot up as the sun touched the center of the sky, sweat cascading from her black hair and down her neck. She had taken to sleeping in the giant owl's nest in the Guardian's Grove when the Gypsy had started teaching her almost as soon as she could walk, and Wind Runner would sleep with her on occasion.

She had fallen asleep with the Gypsy's book over her violet eyes, the same one that now lay open on her lap maybe five pages from the end. Wind Runner's bulky wing lay over her and off the side of the oversized nest like a tent, but he too awoke with a start, and a loud quirky "Hoo!"

"I know," the small girl said, and she stretched out to pet the owl's face reassuringly. His feathers felt soft against her little hand, and she got a sinking feeling in her gut when he didn't look at her that something wasn't right.