Boartusk Heights On a Wing and a Prayer

Evening almost always avoided open places like this. If it was possible to go around a mountain, even if it meant days out of her way, she would go around. The higher up she went, the less trees there were. The less trees there were, the more likely it was that she would be stuck on a mountain, half-blind and burning from the sun, with nothing to do but wait it out for hours while her skin baked, leaving her in pain for days afterwards. So. Evening had no good reason to be scaling a mountain this night, but it was dusk, so she was less afraid of getting stuck in daylight. Unless she were injured up on the mountain, she should be able to get down and to the safety of the trees long before dawn. 

The call of a clear view to the stars is what had possessed her to come up here in the first place. Despite herself, she missed her mother, even for all her coddling, and the stars reminded her as nothing else did of the woman. What she had not accounted for was the scent of boar that overwhelmed her the higher she climbed. She had not yet seen any, although with her nearsightedness and the failing light, she could have very well missed any that had appeared farther away. Boars scared her. She knew that they could be vicious, and they could kill a wolf easily with their tusks.

She decided then that the easiest and safest thing to do would be to move downward. She was at least out of the trees, so she could see the sky clearly from where she was. She didn’t need to go any higher up. Besides, it wasn’t as though she needed a clear view of the sky to see the stars, anyways. The stars were always blurry to her. She gave the mountain a sweeping gaze, intending to turn and move downwards once she was done, but the shape of a wolf caught her eye. She had not expected to see anyone out here, and the sudden appearance of another wolf surprised her. On a normal night, she might have been nervous and avoided talking to the wolf, but tonight she was missing home and the thought of company cheered her. She woofed quietly to the wolf, hoping that they would be up for a conversation.