Redhawk Caldera Caribbean blue

*combines posts*

Although she knew he meant well—and that the Heda had surely placed him here specifically for this purpose—Wildfire couldn't bear @Hux's hovering any longer. It reminded her too much of the way the wolves in the woods had loomed over her, keeping her prisoner in their foul, gloomy lair. It also made her think of the family she missed terribly and also felt disenfranchised from. They hadn't forgotten her as she'd feared, yet they'd left her behind.

"Hux," Wildfire tried to say, only her voice came out much too quietly. She cleared her throat and tried again. "Hux, I need to talk to you." She hardly waited for him to turn, much less come closer. "Go home." She licked her lips and lifted her eyes to his face. "I won't be able to make the trip for months and there's no reason you need to be stuck here too, especially not over the winter. Drageda needs you much more than I do. The Redhawks are plenty capable of looking after me."

She didn't mention that she couldn't stand his helicoptering, though after a pause, she added, "Tell them I'll most likely return in the spring." Wildfire's throat clicked as she swallowed a dry lump there. "And if Thur—if Heda gives you any flak for returning without me, tell her I sent you away. I'm a master ranger, so I can find my way back when the time comes. If he's still here, @Eljay can accompany me. If not, I can always ask one of my family members to escort me." She left no room for argument.

---

She would be staying here indefinitely, a member of the pack for all intents and purposes. That meant Wildfire needed to establish a more permanent home base somewhere. Most likely, the majority of the pack headquartered at the familiar old rendezvous site, yet there were two reasons Wildfire decided to avoid it: firstly, she was still very much an outsider to most and, secondly, she wanted someplace quiet where she could rest frequently. She had only just recovered enough energy to take short walks around the territory and there was a long road of recuperation still ahead of her.

Wildfire chose a resting place on a small outcropping near the foot of the caldera, on its western flank, overlooking the lake. This put her below the rendezvous site and as far from the dark woods as possible (she knew in her bones that they were somewhere to the east of here). The journey there depleted her of energy and she flopped down beneath a bent, squat tree, its fallen leaves crunching beneath the light weight of her body. She promptly fell asleep.

When she woke some time later, the October sky was a soaring, cloudless blue. Wildfire sat up, stretching her stiff muscles, and howled to @Elwood, @Finley and @Raven to let them know of her whereabouts. She then slowly began picking her way down the slope toward the lake shore, eager for a long drink.