Blacktail Deer Plateau woke up on the wrong side

Forward-dated about a week from today. Not actually in the Plateau but a prefix was mandatory.
@Donovan Azura

Although clouds shadowed the sky this morning, Finley rose with the sun and left her riverside rest stop without a drop of sentiment. She’d traveled upstream for several days now, veering off course only briefly to avoid trespassing on claimed lands, and the mountains to the east were beginning to feel more like a wall than a challenge. How many days had she been out here, and why did she feel no more at home than when she’d first arrived?

Restlessness pricked at Finley’s back as the Blacktail Deer Plateau faded into the horizon behind her. She’d been drawn to the forested land, desperate for a taste of anything but another damn fish; but, true to its name, the flat woodland taunted her with its namesake herds. A lone wolf, she’d been taught, didn’t stand a chance against even the weakest deer. Finley scowled. At least there was another forest ahead, this one nestled between the mountains. Maybe there she could snag a rodent or two.

Yet something brought her to a pause as she drew closer. Unfamiliarity with the landscape and its mythos gave Finley no reason to be afraid here, nor was she aware of the wolves staking their claim to the Ravensblood Forest. Instead, she scanned the edge of the trees and realized that the mountains weren’t simply surrounding them, but enclosing the forest like a fortress. On her current path, she’d either have to go through the woods or over the hills, and raking her paws raw on the rocks wasn’t the most appealing option.

Early morning frustration dulled Finley’s attention to her surroundings, and she muttered curses under her breath without caring if it scared off prey or fellow travelers. No way in hell was she turning back now. With her luck she might as well get lost in those woods, never to return.