Rising Sun Valley Seasons come with Change

For a week and a half, Saena haunted the northern foothills of the Sunspire range. Though she was far removed from Blacktail Deer Plateau and knew there was no place for her there any longer, the comfort of being in the mountain's shadow was undeniable. An artifact of having lived on one her whole life, Saena's love of mountains would carry into her later life and would probably define her in the end. She had her heart set on a territory with a nice view, but finding one was another thing altogether. She didn't wish to contest her previous friends and family by claiming land on the mountain and forcing them to share resources, but the distant north was too far, she originally thought, even though the telltale outline of another mountain range tempted her.

It took only a week of lurking around the foothills for her to change her mind about the northern range. Soon she was trotting at a comfortable pace across a wide valley. If she'd looked to the right, she would've recognized the lake where she'd first encountered a dog, Warthog, and would've shuddered at the memory. Instead, she followed the distant silver line of a creek, though before long her course was redirected, for the form of a canid attracted her.

With her recent brand of unshakable confidence, Saena strode within twelve yards of the dark-furred lone female. Even from a distance, she could tell the other wolf had no affiliation; the scent of others could carry for a quarter mile, but Lacinia smelled only of earth and the wind. Saena wasted no time in pitching her ears and establishing herself as a self-assured young lady. The other woman had a rather fragile build, and though a recently awakened part of her yearned to take advantage of this perceived weakness by imposing herself as a dominant bitch, her upbringing kept her rooted, in part because she knew better and in part because she had underestimated a weak wolf before.

"You seem focused," Saena commented idly, glancing sidelong at Lacinia as though she could read her thoughts when, in fact, she could do no such thing.