It had taken many days to get here. The mountains had been unforgiving, their rocky paths seemingly hardly forged and made of stony twists and turns that made her way hard to navigate. The nights had been cold. The days had been lonesome. The winds had been fierce and untamed. But the view from the top of what lied on the other side had been breathtaking and luring enough to encourage her to continue on. Eventually she'd scaled their descent and crossed into a land quite unknown to her, as mysterious as what the future had to hold. The forest here was thick and damp and she welcomed the relative protection its ancient landscape provided. It was the sound of water that Lyanna felt inclined to follow, and she did until her way through the forest brought her to the river's roaring rapids and eventually to a nearby stream that cascaded down a steep, rocky overhang.

The pads of her paws were rough and sore but the mud-and-algae covered banks here felt wonderful underfoot. The girl paused for a moment to survey the area carefully for danger and, having seen basically nothing, she padded over to the water's edge. She lapped up a satisfying drink before taking a good look at the reflection of her face in the shadowed water. Filthy. Her fur was a mess and there were bits of foliage tangled in the lengths of her tawny coat, caked with mud. Wading out into the shallows of the pool, a chill coursed down her spine as it enveloped her lithe form. It was then that she discovered the little gem that existed hidden beneath.

Lyanna pressed forward through it and found herself in the quiet peacefulness of the secluded cavern. It didn't take long to look over its every detail, and finally she reckoned this would be a good place to get some rest. Nestling herself away, back pressed against a cold wall, she laid her head on her paws and listened to the sounds of the water falling.

Some time had gone by since her arrival and subsequent period of recuperation. Lyanna wasn't really able to put a finger on how long it had actually been, as the waterfall and cool, relative darkness of the cavern had lulled her. She'd listened to the roar, the splashing and splattering, and the drip-dropping of the condensation that frequently fell from the cave's ceiling. Now and then she'd close her eyes and drift off into shallow stretches of sleep, but, for all of her exhaustion, she couldn't seem to get any real rest.

The white noise of the falls had disguised the approach of the stranger who had managed to happen upon the hidden hideaway. It wasn't until the girl came traipsing through the cascade that Lyanna knew she was even there, and at that point the unknown soul had her full, wide-eyed attention. She watched as the wolf's dark form plopped down, back against the opposite wall, her own presence seemingly unnoticed. In a moment of confusion, she looked around as if she'd missed something before returning her golden gaze to the cavern's newcomer. Should she say something? The girl looked young, Lyanna honestly didn't want to scare her. Her curiosity was piqued.

"-Perfect place to get some rest, no?" Her form was as still as glass and neutral in all respects.

Having caught the girl off guard, Lyanna watched as she jumped up in a hurry. It wasn't her intention to scare her and the last thing on her mind was doing any harm, but the dark-furred wolf's reaction was understandable nonetheless. She took note of the pretty star marking between the girl's eyes.

The exhaustion reported by the young girl who laid across from her was easy to see. It was in her pretty hazel eyes, in her posture, and in the tone of her weary voice. Lyanna was tired, too, so it was an easy thing to appreciate. In a way she was thankful that she wasn't the only worn-down thing around.

"Well, I was first told of the coyotes' presence here on the other side of the mountain by a boy who warned me about them. He said that there were many...I was lucky enough for a while, didn't have much trouble with them. But now it seems like they're everywhere I go," she offered with a sigh. It was true. She'd had her first run-in with them across the mountain, her second in Red Fern Forest. She'd been fortunate so far in avoiding any sort of confrontation with the pesky - and dangerous - beasts; she could only hope that her streak would continue when she eventually left the relative safety of their little hideaway. "...Maybe you're right - about this place being hard for them to reach." She gave the dark furred girl a kind and encouraging, if not weary smile.

"So you're a loner, too, huh? Do you have plans to settle down?...I'm Lyanna, by the way."