Deepwood Weald I've got a wildcard up my sleeve

Talking to her brother had given Meerkat some clarity on the matter, without actually resolving it. Deciding distraction was the best course—particularly if she could keep it productive, maybe even geared toward one of her trades—she slipped from the mountain once more. She selected a direction at random, wandering rather aimlessly north until the sight of yet another forest in the distance lured her. Oh, she was such a sucker for autumn foliage.

As she entered the woods, the smell of dead and rotting leaves fill her nose, an enjoyable, almost sweet odor. The still living leaves rustled overhead, drawing her attention upward to admire the way they were beginning to change. Little did she know that this was just the first stage in quite a dramatic play, resulting in a curtain call that left every single bough bare save for the evergreens. Obliviously, she trotted deeper into the woodland, filling her breast with deep breaths of chilly September air.

She heard a commotion ahead that reminded her of a night or two previous, when she'd overheard Bronco hunting in The Heartwood. Just like then, she prowled toward the sounds, curious what she would discover today. Surely she wouldn't find her brother again, that would be entirely too coincidental. But imagine her surprise when she reached a bend in a natural footpath and clapped eyes on someone else familiar.

It took Meerkat a beat to place her. "Maia?" she called out as soon as she remembered, a smile spreading over her face, even as that homesick feeling speared through her. Maia's face inevitably made her think of the Firebirds, though she knew via Towhee that Wraen et al had left the copse not long after her own departure. Ignoring the feeling, she toed closer with an expressive, "Hiya!"