The girl was stargazing, perched upon a moonlit outcrop. After a long night of silent observation, she'd fallen asleep.

The fleeting presence of everyone around her left Cvetka with a gaping hole in her heart. She'd met Raum. Now he's gone. She'd met Amaris. But he had more important things to do than have a leech cling to his coat. And...

Hanska.

Why had he been taken from her? Was it something she did?

There was no permanence in the presence of another. No one who would reliably give her a body to lean on when she needed it.

And yet, the same could not be said for the stars.

There was no night in which the stars would not gaze down upon her, cast their dim, silvery light upon the rosy fur that blanketed her slender flank. When she could trust no one, she could trust the stars to be there. Each night. Awaiting her.

The leg once broken after her collision with the earth was mended—at least for the most part. The limb remained weak. Sore. A mere walk out of Fate's Respite towards the Golden Glade left her sore with a hobbled gait.

Fortunately, the girl was content to remain poised upon the stone. A night well spent with her cerulean eyes trained upon the celestial bodies, all of which resided in distances far beyond her comprehension.

How she yearned to hold one in her grasp. The gentle scintillation, its warm glow...

Her peaceful slumber upon the stone was interrupted. A soft thump, somewhere in the near distance, tore the girl away from her dreams and back into cruel reality. A tongue flickered out between her lips, and lapping over her damp nose. Cvetka stepped off the boulder, careful not to lean excessive weight on her sensitive arm.

Nostrils flaring, she wandered forward and eventually halted once a golden body appeared in her line of sight. Cvetka's head dipped downward, ears swiveling forward and fixed on the stranger, listening for sounds.

Was... he dead?

Curiosity killed the cat. Cvetka timidly wandered forward, keeping a safe distance lest the man would react physically to her presence.

---