Ivory continued her business as usual for a time.  After she finished unbraiding her hair, she allows her feet to play along the pools of water; the newly calloused feet relax against the cold pool of water, the tug of the river pulling on them now and again, but otherwise allowing her to relax completely.<br/><br/>Overall, the day was turning out nicely.  There was no immediate threat in sight, and once her laundry dried against the rocks, she'd continue heading south for awhile; and…well, she’d figure things out on the road, she supposed.<br/><br/>Ivory Dove’s bronzed hand turns the page of her history book as her eyes continue scanning the page, before her head suddenly snaps to attention.<br/><br/>The roar of an animal was what caught her attention, and had her heart suddenly beating a mile a minute.  This was the part of the wild she hated the most.  Not the beasts themselves, but the fact that the trees hid them.  It was much easier to be afraid, when you didn’t know what you were facing.  Bravery came with knowledge, and the fact that Ivory didn’t know what it was that had made such a terrifying cry scared her more than anything else.<br/><br/>Rising to her feet,  the young woman grabs her staff and looks around the stream she’d been sitting by.  What had made that sound? Surely she was too far east to be anything that could make such a sound…not to mention a village was only a few miles away, no true predator would wander so close to a place filled with so many humans….had she imagined the roar?  No.  No, there was no way.<br/><br/>Holding onto her staff so tightly her knuckles turn white, Ivory slowly begins to move away from the waters edge; working towards dryer, more firm ground.  An easier place to fight; should it come to that.<br/>