22
The noise of the Wild Hunt left shortly before dawn, but no one felt like celebrating. We just all stayed huddled together, unspeaking, staring into space.
The fire had died back down, but the grayish light through the cracks in the shutters was brightening the room. Gunna went to the doors and lifted the bar, then swung both doors wide open.
The bird-wing patterns on the snow were fresh and as intricate as ever. Gunna looked out at them for a moment, then set the bar aside and shuffled off to the kitchen area, where her sister was already spooning porridge into bowls.
We ate without talking, then the other hunting parties headed out one by one.
"What are we starting with, then?" Thorbjorn asked me once his bowl was scraped clean.
"You are heading out with the others to hunt us so
