The woman pushed one last time and the baby entered the world into welcoming hands. 'Oh Morga, a girl, it's a beautiful girl' Lita whispered. Morga breathed a sigh of relief. She was pleased. The labour had gone well and she was thrilled she had a daughter. This was her second child - her son, Danyl was everything she'd wanted but this time she'd hoped for a girl. At that moment Danyl ran up. The three year old was in a state of high excitement. 'What is it Mother,what is it?' Morga laughed 'It's a girl Danyl, a sister for you.' Her mate Filan smiled. A boy and now a girl born to his hearth, what more could a man want. The news travelled fast around the cave. A healthy child was always good news but especially so this late in winter. It gave them an excuse to celebrate.
Morga was resting, watching her beautiful daughter. Her hair, dark with wetness at birth had dried to a blond fuzzand when she opened her lids, her blue-grey eyes took in all about her. Morga had been thinking of a name for her. As One Who Serves the Mother she would be naming the child herself and felt the name of this child was especially important. She wanted something as beautiful as the child herself and remembered a story told to her as a child by her mother.

Alaraya was a fearless hunter. They said she could call animals to hunt but she only took what she needed and never abused the Mothers gift. Yet if she found any animal wounded or orphaned she couldn't pass by without trying to help, with her healing powers. They also told of her beauty and of her love for her mate Solaron. Together they lived happy, fulfilled lives, blessed with four children. Just what I want for my daughter thought Morga. I shall call her Alaraya. What Morga didn't remember is that the story was true and told of her great great grandmother.

The naming day arrived simultaneously with the day the first spring shoots burst from their buds. All members of the cave were out in force gathering and hunting small game to have fresh at the feast. Hunting for larger game would come later. There was a sense of excitement as the time drew nearer until Morga stood in her ceremonial robes. Filan as leader of the cave, stood beside her beaming at the baby he held.
'We welcome this baby and I name her Alaraya' Morga intoned as she marked their ceremonial plaque with one more mark accepting her into their cave.
'Welcome Alaraya' the cave replied as one.
The little girl grew quickly. She was an endearing child and everyone loved her. By the time she was toddling she was following her mother on foraging trips around the cave. Morga, almost unconsciously, explained things to the little girl even though she couldn't possibly understand.
Their cave nestled in the side of a gorge, not too close to a waterfallthat was the source for the river running through the valley that opened up in front of them. To the left of the cave was woodland with deciduous oak, beech and sycamore that went on to coniferous firs as the land rose up the side of the hills behind the cave. To the right the valley sloped down to the steppes where herds of animals roamed. The valley was rich with produce that supported the cave well, people rarely went hungry here.
Alaraya touched the roe deer fawn that was lying on it's side in front of her, one of it's legs bent awkwardly. The fawn had tired of trying to get up to follow its mother and flee from the human sounds she had heard approaching and she lay exhausted.Morga smiled as Alarayas hands stroked the soft fur of the deer. 'Sorry my daughter' Morga said thinking how aptly she had named the girl, 'This little one has had enough,' but as she went to end the fawns suffering Alaraya looked up at her mother. 'Help, Alaraya help fawn.' She looked so sad that against all tradition Morga decided to try and help the fawn. 'Come Alaraya, we'll take her back to the cave.'
'But it's still alive!' Lita said as Morga brought the fawn into the healers hearth. Lita was Morgas acolyte and was fascinated with anything to do with healing. She learned quickly and although she was mated already this was only her second winter as a woman.
'I know Lita but one look at Alarayas face and I just couldn't kill it. She wants to help it and look at her now.' Alaraya waqs sitting by the fawns head crooning softly and stroking it gently. 'If I didn't know better I'd swear that fawn could understand her. She's only just out of her weaning year, how does she know to be so gentle to an animal.
Morga started explaining to Lita what to do to set the fawn's leg straight. Alaraya listened to her mother intently and took in everything she said. 'This fawn is young to be away from it's mother' Morga said as it began to look around, "What can I give it to eat? Well our babies eat what we do only mushed up so I should think she can." Morga pounded some grain in a bowl and mixed it with water. She put it down in front of the fawn but it just sniffed at the bowl and didn't try to eat any.Alaraya put her fingers in the bowl and let the fawn lick them. "Well look at that" Morga laughed "Alaraya must have an instinct for this, I wouldn't have thought of doing that so quickly, but now I see it it's obvious."
As the deer recovered, the little girl lavished attention on the fawn and they became inseperable.
Morga knew the fawn should go back to it's mother but she couldn't bring herself to force the issue. Then one day Alaraya came running into the cave crying inconsolably. "Whatever is wrong my daughter?" Morga asked trying to comfort the sobbing child. "Fawn gone, big deers come and fawn go." This was the moment Morga had dreaded. "Alaraya" she said rocking the small girl gently, "how would you like to live without me or Filan, your brother or the rest of the cave?" "Not like at all" Alaraya said still weeping. "Exactly, so even though the fawn became your friend she never stopped missing her mother and the rest of her family. She would never have been truly happy without them, so it's better she went back to them isn't it?"
It was a hard lesson for Alaraya to learn and it didn't stop her wanting to help other animals and wishing they'd like to stay with her.
In the summer of her fifth year the cave decided to go to the summer meetingheld at a cave further down the valley. It would only be a two day journey at the slowest persons pace so the whole cave packed what they would need along with the tent they needed for communal living during the moon the summer meeting would last. They took plenty of food to save depleting the home caves resources- besides there was plenty around their cave. Food could even be found deep in winter if necessary, but they were unsure it would be as abundant for the home cave of the summer meeting.
Finally the time came to leave. Everyone assembled outside. There were 19 of them altogether, the youngest Lita's toddler, the oldest a grandfather with 5 grandchildren. They set off in glorius sunshine, the walk a pleasure for all. They stopped often to allow people to rest, then decided to put up camp by a small river and Alaraya and Danyl ran to play in the water. They loved to swim and spent some time playing together, swimming up and down and searching for pretty stones to build into piles. The cave ate a communal meal outside the lean-to they had erected although it wasn't really necessary during the balmy summer evenings. They chatted and told stories before retiring early in anticipation of seeing friends and relatives the next day.
Just as the sun rose the next morning Alaraya awoke. She loved the early mornings and although she knew she was not supposed to swim alone she couldn't resist the temptation.

The naked child ran out of the hide covered lean-to towards the rocky beach at the bend in the small river.........

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