Cassiopeia's View Been underestimated my entire life

specifically for @Ukulele! Sorry this took a bit <3

It had been months since Maia left the territory, but after letting @Eljay know that she wanted to go for a walk, Maia left the kids under his capable care and took the opportunity to get a little space from the pack entirely.

The forest was still home and she loved it dearly, but the entire place was a reminder of everything she'd lost.  In every tree she saw dragons, fairies, and the magic she and Wraen had once spoken about.  Around every bend she expected to see her sister waiting, with that familiar smile, ready for a game or a poem.

Maybe she shouldn't try to hide that as much as she did, but she couldn't help it.  Leaving felt like avoiding, but it also felt, for the first time in a while, like some of that weight was lifted.

She couldn't stay out long.  Sylvie and Hymnal still needed her for food and the rest of them... she missed them, even being away only this long.  But she sat down with a sigh and, just for a little while, enjoyed the wind blowing through and the view of the late-afternoon sun over the land stretching out below.  Even in the lower mountains, it was beautiful.