Grouse Thicket but they forgot to come and get me

Asivaq couldn’t fall asleep. Although it’d been a long day of traveling, she couldn’t quiet her mind. Ghosts of her past haunted her on this particular night. She thought of the family and pack she’d abandoned, her beloved son who had gone to the dancing lights too soon, and the family that remained. Her heart hurt; how much she’d managed to ruin in such a short time was remarkable. She felt more alone and incapable than ever.

She was no Issumatar. Her decisions had cost them lives, time, and effort, which they couldn’t afford to waste anymore. What was she even doing? Aside from leading her family head-first for a deadly demise?

While she knew what to do, embarrassment and shame surrounded her decision that night. How could it not? She would be returning home with her tail tucked between her legs.

I need my Anaa, she thought pitifully. I need my people—my home ... we will be safe there. She tucked her chin to her breast as tears began to fall down her cheeks, and she shut her eyes and squeezed them tight. She is a better leader than me. She exhaled slowly, her hot breath billowing in the cold air. She watched as it wafted upwards and onwards.

She would tell @Kigipigak her desire to return to Moonglow in the morning, and from there, the family of five would redirect their path.