Sam had hardly slept a wink the night before, though he wasn't the slightest disturbed as he quickly picked his way over frosted bush and bramble, heading towards the cave. The cold morning certainly helped his body stay alert, this in addition to the adrenaline spurred by starting his new profession today. He'd been looking forward to it for many weeks, having kept a mental list of all the ideas he was ready to propose, all the experiments he wished to conduct, and the natural cycles he wanted to study. In his excitement, he had underestimated the time at which the sun was rising. The sky was just barely beginning to lighten on the horizon, but not yet even beginning to purple with color. Undeterred, Sam decided he would simply wait for his superior at the mouth of the cave... and maybe give himself an unofficial tour, if there was enough light to see by.
When he reached the cave, he approached with a bit more caution. Gingerly walking up the rocky path to the mouth, he could be seen peeking his head around the corner, into the dark abyss with eager curiosity tempered with nervousness. "Hello?" he whispered, a bit dramatically.
When no one answered, he slowly edged a paw in, sniffing the ground in the hopes of gleaming some interesting and new odors. He was sorely disappointed, finding the ground in fact smelled like moist earth and the familiar smell of pack. Emboldened, Sam continue a few paces into the cave, assisted by the slightest lightening of the sky which filtered into the opening.
