Blacktail Deer Plateau turning the world back on itself

Dawn arrived and Peregrine slowly came awake. He lay still for a long time, as had become customary the past several weeks. Some days, he didn't move much at all. But instead of letting the hours pass him by, he finally pushed himself upright, then climbed onto all fours. He stood for a few minutes, gazing at his slumbering family, then sighed lightly and began to walk.

For about two weeks now, Peregrine hadn't done much of anything but go through the motions. Today could be much of the same. Yet as he walked slowly through the woods, toward the plateau's edge, he felt a flicker in his chest. He longed suddenly to watch the sunrise. For the first time in a while, he moved now with purpose.

When he arrived at the ledge, he stared at the glowing horizon for only a minute before a sound below drew his attention. It took him a moment to locate the source of the noise and another for recognition to register. Feeling another flutter in his breast, Peregrine shuffled as quickly as he could manage down the slope leading into neutral territory.

"Fox," he murmured, surprised to see her looking tearful and wounded. Feeling a strong protective urge, he closed the space between them, placed his swarthy head over hers and drew her petite body against his chest, mindful of both their wounds. He felt his own slow heartbeat. "What happened?" he whispered into her ear, finding it strangely comforting to reach out to someone else in pain. Maybe it was true that misery loved company.