Inga woke up slowly to the noise of people in the distance.<br/><br/>Trying to blink away grogginess, she lifted her head off the tree branch she was resting on- and then remembered where she was. The previous night she had climbed a tree and tied herself in to sleep more safely. Most predators in the forests didn't climb trees, so she was safer up high. That was one of the tips her dad had told her for if she was traveling alone. He hadn't mentioned the stiffness in he arms. Groaning, she began working at the knots crossing her stomach. Her fingers were numb from the cold, making the work slow, but eventually untied the last knot and swung her legs so she was sitting on the branch with her legs hanging off the side. Inga squinted into the distance, trying to discern the source of the noise. She had been trying to head towards civilization, so maybe she was closer than she thought- but then she heard the gunshots. Maybe this wasn't something she wanted to be near. After unhooking her bag from a nearby tree branch, Inga coiled up the rope and stowed it her bag, trying to decide her next move. Heading towards fighting didn't seem like a good idea, but then it was the only sign of people she had had for days. And it would mean heading off the route her family had planned if she went away from the source of the noise. Maybe she should just wait. She idly pulled out a strip of dried venison and began chewing on it.<br/><br/>Then she heard the heavy footsteps at the base of the tree. She looked down.<br/><br/>The biggest bear she had ever seen was limping through the clearing.<br/><br/>Inga stopped chewing. Maybe, she thought, if she ignored it, and held very still, it would go away. Instead, it snorted loudly and laid down at the base of the tree. She gritted her teeth.  It was just her luck that one of the few animals that climbed trees would show up while she was in a tree. She squinted at it, trying to get a better sense of what she was up against. Blood was dripping off it, obviously fresh. Was it wounded? If it was, maybe she could kill it before it had a chance to kill her. Gingerly, she reached out to grab her gun- she had hung it the previous night on the same tree branch she had hung her bag. The noise was too loud in the quiet, but the bear didn't move. Maybe it was already dead. Maybe she could just climb off through the trees and totally avoid fighting an angry bear. She stood carefully and began to step onto a nearby branch.<br/><br/>It immediately snapped under her weight, dropping the branch and a ton of snow below. Inga screamed and snagged a branch as she fell, her arms screaming in protest. Her gun banged against her painfully as she dangled by her arms. The bear below started as the thick tree limb fell besides it. It looked up at Inga and glowered at her, a low growl rumbling in its throat.<br/><br/>Inga desperately tried to remember how one scared away bears. Try to look big? Make a lot of noise? She screamed again, desperately trying to find another foothold. The stiffness in her arms was coming back, and she wasn't sure how long she could hold herself up. The bear snarled and clawed at the tree. "Help!" Inga shouted, hoping someone was in earshot.<br/><br/><br/>Magpie Krupin was in earshot, but she was busy looking for her dog.<br/><br/>He had run off after some small fluffy animal, which was annoying because she had thought she had finally broken him on that habit. The big galoot was pretty easy to follow though- she just had to follow the sound of barking and the huge footprints on the snow. However, the screaming made her pause. She really wanted to look for her dog, but whoever was screaming sounded like a kid, and honestly, dead children was a much too depressing way to start a day. Besides, it was the sort of thing that Tiny would head towards. So she turned and began heading at a slightly faster pace towards the noise, holding her gun at the ready. She whistled, hoping that maybe the dog would answer the signal, but she only heard the answering tweet of a bird and more screaming. Magpie sighed.<br/><br/>Tiny was, in fact, distracted by the screaming. He turned and sniffed the air, then, barking again, began running towards the noise, barking the whole way. He usually had a predisposition to ferret out those in need and offer assistance, often at his own detriment. He careened through the underbrush, drawing closer to Inga's location.