Nocturne Summit New Bohemia

This was one of my favorite threads ever; thanks! :)

He did as she wished, getting up to leave. Wildfire did not react to his parting words in any way other than to turn away with a quiet huff of breath, facing out over the view once more. She refused to glance in his direction again, though her ears twitched softly as his retreating footfalls faded behind her. Only after another ten minutes or so did she narrow her eyes and glance over her shoulder, to make sure he was really gone. There was only a bit of blood and some tufts of fur to indicate he had ever been there.

Wildfire winced as another flare of agony acted as a painful reminder of what had transpired. She should go find some cold water, get herself cleaned up and probably seek medical help. But she was no more likely to seek Thistle now than she had been following the real Goober's attack. The woman would demand answers and explanations if Wildfire showed up at her doorstep looking fresh from a bar fight. She would poke and prod until she nudged the ugly truth out into the open. Wildfire couldn't handle that.

Her insides squeezed when she realized what effect this would have on Floki too. He was already confused. If she showed her face looking like this, he would get scared and angry. He would demand to know who had done this to her. He might even seek vengeance on her behalf. Wildfire found herself wishing inanely that she had picked this fight right after Goober's attack, as a sort of cover. Some random dude attacked me in the wilderness! She quickly realized the blatant stupidity behind that line of thinking.

At this very moment, Wildfire didn't know what she was going to do or where she was going to go. But she slowly stood and padded off the ledge. She found herself climbing upward again. It was as if she was drowning in deep water or stuck at the bottom of a dark pit. If she kept going up, she would eventually find some air and light, right?