Liam didn't really have a destination in mind as he made his way north-west of Cour des Miracles on that early November evening. He was in his Optime form and for the first time in a long time there was a hint of a smile on his face as he walked. It was a pretty good day. Perhaps not as far as the weather was concerned but other than the clouds and the evidence that rain was on the way... things were... not so bad. They could always be loads better though. But alas, no one could get everything they wanted in life. Besides, what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. That was Liam's mentality lately. Lately he had also been leaving the pack-lands a lot, mostly to entertain himself but also to relax and forget for a little while about everything that was going on at home. With the arrival of winter fast approaching a lot of jobs needed to be done – especially since the war. Homes and other structures needed repairing, meat needed to be gathered before the herds all migrated and... Liam had been promoted to Duke. While he was beyond happy about that, the new responsibilities that rested on his shoulders were overwhelming. It was taking him quite a bit of time to get a hang of everything. He wasn't doing too bad though. Now that was worth smiling about.
He was about fifteen miles away from his pack when he stopped for the first time so that he could snack on the cooked rabbit he had gotten from home before leaving. He had a few other necessities in his rucksack because he didn't know how long he'd be gone for. If he didn't find somewhere to sleep overnight, then he'd probably go back home and arrive at the crack of dawn. It was the negative side of leaving so late in the afternoon. Honestly – he wasn't sure why he'd decided to just go. Maybe he was expecting to stumble on someone? Someone new, someone he had met? He didn't really care as long as something exciting happened. As he continued walking again he recognized the path he'd taken when he'd been going to Aniwaya to fight. It was the same one – just another couple dozen miles and he would be in the pack's territory. The idea still brought chills. Honestly, the idea of Aniwaya in general made him feel sickly. He knew the guardians were dead or gone but he just couldn't help the prejudices. They had hurt so many – damaged so much. They had killed his uncle.
How the hell was the Duke supposed to deal with that without getting a little angry? Sighing, he changed direction. Following the same path that had brought him so many bad memories wasn't exactly good for his sanity. So he walked a little higher north – going further and further from Crimson Dreams and coming closer to Ethereal Eclipse. It was slowly getting dark and Liam knew that in a few hours' time the sun would have been completely engulfed by darkness. He decided he would make himself a little camp site for the night and crash there. He'd continue tomorrow – whether he headed home then or continued west was still up for debate. He walked for another half-mile before finding a nice large tree that would make a good resting place. Along with the pocket knife and lighter he'd brought along with him from home it was bound to make for a decent shelter and good protection. Just in case.
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