The 7th of April or May? Not that it matters to me, Rue's timeline is flexible like a slinky <3
There were so many amazing places to check out in this land! Having skirted around the north of the mountain range, and spent a little time to the west of it, Ruenna had, in a typical moment of spontaneous decisiveness, given herself two more sunsets to reach the other side.
Oh boy, that had been a push. Determined not to fail at her own completely arbitrary and self-imposed deadline, Rue had struggled over the mountainous pass at its northern end, not entirely used to its unique kind of dangerous terrain. Stubborness overcame all, though (or just got you killed) and by the time that sun was falling below the mountain to the west, she was completely exhausted and almost too desperate for sleep to appreciate it.
But she
had made it, and had tucked herself away in an abandoned, hidden den made by something almost a little too small, and had slept clear through to midday, dead to the world.
The explorations would not cease just because one target had been met; the deadline which had driven her so hard over the last two days was promptly forgotten, and once she finally emerged, stretching and aching but feeling fantastic, Rue had continued to trot south-east, following a river she'd discovered and quenched her thirst at. Before long, she was padding through a shallow, secluded valley, in which all the trees were a beautiful shade of pink, and, having decided that it was a splendid place to waste away a relaxed afternoon (for her legs were really desperate to just stop for a few hours, still not entirely recovered from her epic trek) she'd hopped up onto the
thick, low-hanging horizontal branch of one of the magnolia trees and laid there, a few feet off the ground, an arm dangling off the side of the branch as she pretended to be some kind of cat.
She'd stayed there for some time, just enjoying the serenity of the place as she decided where to go next, when she was alerted to someone strolling nearby; ears twisting towards it, she glanced down for a sign of who or what it might be and caught sight of a handsome young man, all dark coat, trotting through this peaceful place. He was talking to himself, she realised, and pushed her head forward as though being a few inches closer would help her to overhear better.
It actually did! Or maybe it was just because he was coming closer. As his rhetorical question was left hanging in the air, she stifled a giggle, rolling onto her back so that she was really lounging on the branch like a feline might (and damn, they made it easier than it actually was, wolves weren't made for hanging around in trees) and then called out, in a mock-spooky voice:
"to atone for your sins!" If he hadn't noticed her yet, he certainly would now. Dropping the theatrical tone, she looked down at him and grinned.
"I know this place doesn't look the part but it's full of judgemental spirits and stuff, honestly. They just prefer a fabulous kind of setting, all those dark, spooky forests are so overused."