Otter Creek Only here for the weekend

She came around gradually, awareness blooming like a slow sunrise. It must have been a cloudy day in this personal metaphor, because even when Wildfire roused fully, everything still felt dark and foggy. She opened her eyes wider and took in her surroundings, peering at the rock walls on every side and furrowing her brow in confusion. Where was she? How had she gotten here?

Am I back in Hougeda? she wondered, though dismissed the thought out of hand. Nothing about this place looked or smelled familiar. She made to push into a sit, overcoming a great sense of weakness in her limbs, when a shadow fell across her. Wildfire froze instinctively, chestnut eyes zeroing in on the mouth of the cave.

A familiar figure strode into the dim interior, though it took Wildfire a full minute to process how she knew him. "What happened?" she asked, licking dry lips. "Was I attacked by the—?" She vaguely remembered assisting his fallen friend, though everything went hazy after that.