It had really started out as any other day, running around her little village, helping others with this and that. And then Genevieve had asked her to take some herbs to the next little settlement over. Of course, Kiva had happily agreed. Wind Haven was her home, but it did sometimes get boring, not that she’d ever admit that out loud.

So, with a brisk trot and the herbs bundled safely in her mouth, Kiva set out on what should have been a routine run. Long legs ate up the strides easily, bounding along with ears pricked for any unusual activity. Her home was typically pretty peaceful, but you never knew what lay around the next bend.

Kiva wasn’t too far from the border of her own village when her pace began to falter and slow. Wait, hadn’t that been where the tree with the four scores in the bark was supposed to be? She couldn’t have gotten mixed up, that was just ridiculous. Call her self-assured, sure, but Kiva *wasn’t* one to get lost. Ever. She knew where she was and where she was going at all times.

Her ears twitched, then flattened against her head. Carefully setting down the herbs on a flat rock nearby, she picked up the pace and backtracked a little to… where an unusually shaped rock *should* have been. And the moss-covered one as well, right next to it. Hm. No, that simply wasn’t right. She had to be mixed up somehow, even though she wasn’t sure how that was even possible. She ventured further back from the way she came, her steps growing more hesitant as she realized that the land didn’t seem all that familiar anymore. Oh, well great. Genevieve was gonna be spitting mad when her herbs didn’t get delivered til next winter!

Grumbling to herself, the girl twisted her neck to see if the herbs were still where she left them. Yep, right there on the flat rock so at least she wasn’t hallucinating or going crazy. Cause that’d be fun, right? She shook her head, clearing out those thoughts. “Well, this is… unexpected. And embarrassing,” she told the herbs matter-of-factly as she came to a halt beside them again. “I don’t suppose you’ll show me the way, huh?”

Yes, the herbs would come to life and lead the way, like some sort of spirit. As if. Her nose raised, scenting and searching for any semblance of normalcy. Just damp earth, pine resin, and crushed leaves. How curious. She supposed she couldn’t hear anyone from Wind Haven either, no activity, no one yelling or sparring, nothing.

“He—” She stopped shortly after attempting to call out, gritting her teeth together. Her gaze wandered while she listened, eventually settling on a cluster of flowers nearby. Bright ones, too. Almost obnoxiously so. Kiva stared at them for a moment, brow furrowing. Had those been there before?

Of course not. Because apparently the missing landmarks weren’t enough. Now the flowers were suspicious too. Wonderful. She was having a perfectly normal day. Her ears pressed tighter against her head as she glanced back the way she’d come. This simply wasn’t possible. Kiva didn’t get lost; it was just as simple as that. Yeah, she was frustrated (and fine, a little scared, but she’d never say that out loud) but she was fine. This was fine. It had to be.

She wasn’t panicking. Just confused. There was a difference, thank you very much. This was supposed to be a normal supply run. How had she… gotten lost?