The Silver-Eyed Owl

Krenen woke up lying on his side, and scolded himself silently for it. The cave floor was too hard for that, and he always awakened with a stiff neck, or shoulder ache, or back pain. Sometimes all three, like this day.

The worst part now was that he had to get up without grunting, because no one else was going to wake up for at least another hour or two, and he didn't want to disturb them. Silently, the former guard of Crown managed to get out from under the wolf skin coverings, get dressed, and step out of his cave room, without making a single sound.

Krenen, his brother and wife, and Lunos had all improvised tiny sleeping rooms for a bit of privacy by stacking stones to erect low walls that divided the cave. This cave is where they'd been staying after leaving their previous encampment, running away from whatever it was that had made that horrible, gut-wrenching growl-howl.