Boartusk Heights the first step

For the first time since setting out on her own, Andornika allowed herself time to think and reflect on her life. With the enticing view of a whole new world sprawled out in front of her, taunting her with possibility, it was hard not to reflect. Of course, she tried to only think strictly about the future, knowing full well the kind of pain she'd inflict upon herself if she brought up the past, yet this too seemed inevitable. The painful echoes still slipped through, stole into her heart and began to fill her with such a numbness that she forgot the view entirely, even forgot the world. Her eys grew distant, and the only thing she felt was the cold winds, still ripling through her fur.

In this state, she didn't hear the soft crunching of approaching paws. Or paerhaps she didn't, but thought nothing of it. She didn't care to recognize the strange feeling along her spine, the one that comes about when another presense had drawn near. It wasn't until a soft woof sliced through the frigid winter air that she broke free of her thoughts and became aware of the stranger. Too aware.

To hear another wolf's voice aside from her parents' was jarring enough, even without the added fear that all strangers sought to harm her. Her body completely spun around to face the source, legs splaying in a defensive manner and pupils shrunken to mere dots. Every inch of her being screamed alarm; even the air seemed to show it, her fear manifesting in quick clouds of steam puffing from her maw. To make matters worse, she nearly lost her footing on the rocky edge when turning around, but the adreneline in her veins quickened her reaction, forcing her to find a safer position before falling was even possible. All the while, her pale gaze swiftly scanned the wolf before her, taking in every detail.

A female by the sound of her voice, and the first things to be noticed were her striking blue eyes and uniqely freckled face. The second was her posture and attitude; she didn't look threatening, and she didn't sound it either. This certainly helped the anxious youth to relax, but she remained on guard, still not trusting the wolf.

Now that her shock had subsided, she could recall being asked a question, and with no other idea on how to react to her first stranger, she gave a simple reply.

"Yes, I... I suppose..." Her mind was still reeling, leaving her tongue to fend for itself, so she bluntly asked the first question that came to mind. "Who are you?" As her brain slowly but surely began to catch up, she realized the wolf's name didn't matter to her, so much as who they represented, where they came from. So she quickly followed up with that question. "And... and where are you from?"