Exploring the mountain in the winter, with snow falling from above, wasn’t one of his best ideas. But he was curious about the land they had decided to settle in and wanted to explore as much as possible before they moved again—if they did. His mother seemed intent on making a home out of the mountain. He, too, was partial to the rocky terrain, for it reminded him of the monadnock. The good parts of the monadnock, not the parts tainted with painful memories. As much as he enjoyed travelling he was not opposed to the idea of settling down. Having a place to return to after spending his day adventuring. The south was not appealing to him, despite being home to a particular amber-eyed girl. The mountain was close enough for him to visit without being gone for too long.
He kept to the lower parts of the mountain, for he feared if he went too high he wouldn’t be able to make it back down. The snow fell from the grey sky at a leisurely place; not enough to raise alarm. He might not be able to track his previous tracks on the way back to where they were camping out but he’d be able to find another path with ease. There was so much more to the Lore than he had initially thought. From the monadnock he could see for miles on a good day, and he had observed the very mountain he was now walking on from a distance. It was a strange feeling, to be stepping through the same territory he had once watched from afar. It was a lot different than he had expected, but that was also due to the amount of snow that blanketed the stone. Trees surrounded him, sheltering him from some of the wind as he continued forward, his nose pressed to the ground as he searched for something to capture his attention…