Gyrfalcon's Keep Don't sneak up on a danger noodle

@Priest
Dated afternoon of July 3rd
Sorry about the wait! 

She'd woken up hours before Shigetoshi, unable to sleep any longer when her dreams had become so haunted. Essie rose and wandered away, hoping to return before he woke and worried for her but not...thinking, especially, of how he might feel as she did so. Her mind was in turmoil, and she needed a distraction.

The shrieking falcons were distraction enough. The hill they roosted on was loud, drowning out her thoughts as easily as the sound of her paws against the stone. It was peaceful in its own way, but nothing that she'd ever experienced before. Often she found herself looking up, watching as the birds winged overhead, careful to keep an eye on where they landed so she could avoid their nests. The last thing she needed was to be attacked from above.

By necessity, this meant she wasn't exactly watching where she was stepping, and so she didn't notice the slender form splayed across the path until she stepped on it. The creature's offended hiss was too quiet for her to pick up on, and she looked down, pulling her paws back in surprise but leaning close to get a look at this strange animal that reared up, mouth opening to display impressive fangs. She was ready to try and dodge the bite.

She wasn't ready for an acrid liquid to be sprayed directly in her eyes. Saoirse's howl of pain cut through even the most incessant calls of the falcons around her, and she stumbled back a few steps, whining pathetically as she tried to wipe her paw over her face.