i don't wanna touch the ground

Ara felt quickly foolish for feeling as she had -- hope, mingled with fear for what it meant if this satchel did belong to her wife -- but it was hard to not let her mind slip into such somber thoughts. Quickly she regained her composure as she tugged the handle over her head, tipping her head up until it settled in a better position over her shoulders. She could only hope that she'd manage to hang on to the satchel until she got back to the mainland. Any herbs she found here likely wouldn't survive the journey, unless she carried them in her mouth, so she'd have to be careful about what she gathered. There was little sense in gathering herbs needlessly, only to abandon them here. Better leave them to grow for the next creature who might need them. Inhaling sharply, she moved from her stationary position, trying to get her mind back on track.

The breeze hadn't worked in her favor, so Ara hadn't noticed the arrival of another until she heard her gentle pawsteps. Feeling a bit frazzled, expecting to be alone here, Ara lifted her head to face the strange from a distance, her blue eyes clear and nonthreatening. The stranger seemed a bit timid, fearful even if she had to guess, and not at all dangerous. Her own head lowered slightly, tail curling against her hind legs to signify she wasn't a threat, either. She had no claim to this place, and would happy make her departure if anyone pressed the issue.

The girl was significantly younger than her, far too young to be called a child but close enough to the age of her own sons to consider her anything but. Ara's face twisted into a gentle smile. "Hello there," Ara offered, her voice soft as she took a few tentative steps forward. She was hyper-aware of the satchel that was draped around her shoulders, wondering briefly how the tattered cloth might look to the stranger. "I'm not sure, to be honest. It's my first time here." Though she wasn't much of an extrovert, she did crave conversation and company on occasion, and she decided this woman was a welcome distraction from her somber thoughts. "It's beautiful though, isn't it?" Ara's gaze left Quake to settle back on the buildings in the distance, wishing she knew why they had existed and how they had been put there -- the mystery of it all, though, made it all the more lovely.