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When everyone as going had gathered on the front terrace, they started out With Joharran leading the way, they headed north, walking down froe party, roup fro There were still many people Ayla did not know very well, but by now she at least knew almost everyone’s name
Ayla was curious which way Joharran would go From the ride they took on the horses, she knew that when they started, the floodplain valley on the right bank of The River—the Ninth Cave side—was broad If they headed upstreaenerally northeast direction, trees would be close to the water, and a wide expanse of grassy field separated The River frohlands in a gradual slope However, after a short distance, water hugged steep cliffs on the other side, the left bank, which was on the right-hand side as one traveled toward the source “Left bank” and “right bank” were ter downstrea upstream
Jondalar had told her that the next closest community of Zelandonii was only a few miles away, but that they would need a raft to complete the trip if they stayed close to The River because the course of the ay changed Farther upstream it curved in a more northerly direction, and the lay of the land forced the water to the wall of the cliff on the right bank, their side, with no space for even a narrow path after it turned north, and finally east again before the next abri was reached The people of the Ninth Cave usually took an overland route to visit their nearest northern neighbors
The leader turned up the path beside the Wood River tributary to the shallow crossing, then cut directly across Wood River Valley Ayla noticed that they were not following the route she and Jondalar had taken with the horses shortly after they arrived Instead of cutting across to the narrow valley with the steep, dry streambed, Joharran took a trail that was parallel to The River, leading to the flat lowlands of the right bank They turned left through grass and brush and started up the gradual slope, then switchbacked in a zigzag up the face of the highland
Ayla kept track of Wolf out of the corner of her eye as he ran ahead, following his nose She recognized istered in herThere’s a stand of black birch over there by The River, she thought, the bark can help prevent e, and here’s soood to knohere s; a decoction of the bark is so good for headaches, and the aching bones of the elderly, and other pains I didn’t know there was ood flavor to ood for headaches, too, and helps a baby’s colic I’ll have to remember this for later Durc didn’t suffer from colic much, but some babies do
The trail steepened as they reached the sharper incline near the top, then opened out to the high level field When they reached the windy plateau, she walked a ways ahead to the edge, then stopped to rest and wait for Jondalar, as having a little trouble leading Racer and his travois up the steep, rocky path with the abrupt turns Whinney cropped a few blades of fresh grass while they waited Ayla adjusted theand checked the load she carried in panniers and on her back, then stroked her and talked to her in the special horse language Ayla looked down at The River and its floodplain, and the long line of people, young and old, straggling up the trail, then the view beyond
The elevated plateau offered an expansive panora countryside, and awere still tangled in the trees near the water, and a shroud of soft white concealed The River in places, but the veil was lifting, revealing shafts of light fro strea thickened and the liray-white sky
When Jondalar arrived with Racer, they started across the high plateau together Walking with the tall , with the wolf at her heels and the horses pulling the pole drags following close behind, Ayla was euphoric She ith the ones she loved most and could hardly believe the man beside her would soon be herthe similar trek they had made with the Lion Caht her closer to an inevitable destiny she did not want She had proht have been happy with, if she hadn’t met and loved Jondalar first But Jondalar had become distant, didn’t seem to love her anymore, and there was no doubt that Ranec not only loved her, but wanted her desperately
Ayla had no such adverse feelings now She was so filled with happiness, she felt sure it overflowed and suffused the air around her, perround she walked upon Jondalar was also re The proble his people with a woht not be acceptable He had resolved his problems and was no less full of joy than she Then, he had been sure Ayla was lost to him for ever, but here she was beside him and every time he looked at her, she looked back at him with eyes full of love
They followed the trail across the level highland that took thee, where they had stopped when they were there alone Before they crossed the s over the edge into The River directly below The people of the Cave had spread out across the high field, so their own trail The walkers took with theh packs could be heavy and soet a second load, usually of items they wanted to trade
Ayla and Jondalar had talked to Joharran and offered to the Cave the hauling services of the two horses The leader spoke to several people, but he decided to load up the horses with inally planned the hunts, he had expected that several people would need tothe
Using the horses saved them the trouble, and for the first time he realized that trained horses could be more than a novelty They could be useful Even the help they had provided on the hunt, and Jondalar’s fast trip back to the Ninth Cave to tell Zelandoni and Shevonar’s iven him the full awareness of their potential benefit He understood better when he and several others were saved a trek back to t
he Ninth Cave, but with the horses traveling so close, he also became aware that the animals required extra work
Whinney was used to the pole drag, she had pulled a travois duringa load and was eable Joharran had seen that his brother had to ith the horse, especially turning on the trail where the poles restricted hisstallion cal the load intact At the Ninth Cave, Ayla and Jondalar had started out near the front of the group, but by the tiain, they were closer to the middle
They reached the place where Ayla and Jondalar had turned back before, where the path began to descend This ti the easiest grade, winding through brush, open grassland, and, in a protected dip, trees They reached a rock shelter that was so close to the water, part of it extended over the water They had traveled just under two h the steep clier