
Another night arrived. Another boring and ultimately meaningless hunt to prolong her existence. Salix sighed and squinted away from the red disc of the setting sun. Accustomed to the dark as her eyes were, even this was painful. But she had to start moving at sunset, or she'd never budge from the crack in the rocks she used as a den.
Still, once the leopardess got moving, she was able to continue moving, to hunt, to eat, to survive another night and live another day.
Not that she really cared to. She'd lost her will to live along with her mate in an earthquake that had tumbled the rocks that formed their den, burying him alive. Salix had dug frantically, stubbing and dulling her claws on the stone, trying to save his life but to no avail. Since then, she'd given up. Life had no meaning for her without love.
It didn't even matter to her when she spotted something odd in the grass. She simply sighed and began to make her way to it. Stealth was a matter of habit and training, and it was more trouble than it was worth to break those now.