02-21-2026, 06:09 PM
== sorry for not posting right after the hiking suggestion.. ==
Carol gave Robin a small, grateful smile. “Pike O’Stickle it is, then.” The name alone sounded like it would demand something from her legs…maybe that was the point.
She glanced toward the food table when Robin motioned, the smell enticing her. Normally she’d be first in line for a steak, but today her stomach felt like it was still somewhere back in the nebula. “It smells amazing but I think I’m better off grabbing something after I’ve burned off a little… static.”
Carol shifted her gaze to Aeryn when she chimed in with the trail recommendation. Carol nodded in acknowledgment followed by a thumbs up to show appreciation. “Thanks. Sounds like exactly what I need.”
She shifted the strap of her small pack as she looked around. The chatter around the gazebo washed over her warm, easy, familiar and for a moment she felt like staying. But the knot in her chest hadn’t loosened yet.
“I’ll check in when I’m back down,” she said, tone light but not quite breezy. “Hopefully there's still some steak.”
With that, Carol turned toward the trailhead, a map crinkling softly in her pocket as she walked.
>> on to Pike O’Stickle >>
The trailhead was quieter than Carol expected. With each step she took, the voices behind her became softer until they were just background noise.
The first incline hit quickly and forced her legs to remember what they were for. Carol welcomed the burn. It was honest. Predictable. No politics, no performance, no wondering whether she’d misread a situation or disappointed someone...this was just gravity and muscle.
She paused at a switchback, resting a hand rest a pine tree. The air smelled clean…earthy. She closed her eyes for a moment, letting the quiet settle into her bones.
You’re still here.
Carol started climbing again, pushing herself even harder as the train increased its intensity. It forced her to focus on her footing, which felt good to have something simple to solve. This was just rock, root, step, breath and repeat.
Halfway up the next rise, she stopped again to check out the view. A slight smile appeared on her face as she looked over the valley. She saw tiny shapes of crew members moving around. From up here, they looked… peaceful. Whole. Like a family she wasn’t sure she knew how to step back into.
Carol exhaled slowly. “Okay,” Carol mumbled. “One thing at a time.”
She adjusted her pack, took a drink of water, and continued toward the ridge, and maybe...just maybe...if she was lucky, she would find a version of herself that didn’t feel... feel quite so stuck.
By the time Carol reached the top, her mind had finally quieted and her legs were trembling. She felt satisfied that she’d pushed hard enough. She dropped her pack and sat down on a boulder, her knees bent, her arms wrapped around them. With every breath she exhaled, she could feel the tension she was carrying, begin to release. The feeling she had right now started something within her she hadn't felt in some time. A feeling that she used to chase in far less healthy ways. There were a lot of late nights for Carol which sometimes resulted in a hookup that felt like a good idea until the next day. She still liked to unwind with a drink, but she was trying to steer herself with more intention now.
Maybe that was why not getting the position nod hurt. She wasn’t perfect, still probably made some impulsive choices, but with skills in tactical and security, she had learned that she could adapt, and her helm skills were still at the top. But Carol took it hard, feeling like she’d been benched?
She sat on the boulder, letting the wind blow at her hair. The quiet wasn’t comforting at first. But as she sat there, she felt the truth she’d been avoiding.
I wanted it. Shit.
She didn’t know how long she sat there. She stood, rolling her shoulders back, feeling the strength in her legs and the steadiness returning to her breath. Maybe she wasn’t done. Maybe she was just in the middle of the climb.
== need to rest before climbing back down.. phew! ==
Carol gave Robin a small, grateful smile. “Pike O’Stickle it is, then.” The name alone sounded like it would demand something from her legs…maybe that was the point.
She glanced toward the food table when Robin motioned, the smell enticing her. Normally she’d be first in line for a steak, but today her stomach felt like it was still somewhere back in the nebula. “It smells amazing but I think I’m better off grabbing something after I’ve burned off a little… static.”
Carol shifted her gaze to Aeryn when she chimed in with the trail recommendation. Carol nodded in acknowledgment followed by a thumbs up to show appreciation. “Thanks. Sounds like exactly what I need.”
She shifted the strap of her small pack as she looked around. The chatter around the gazebo washed over her warm, easy, familiar and for a moment she felt like staying. But the knot in her chest hadn’t loosened yet.
“I’ll check in when I’m back down,” she said, tone light but not quite breezy. “Hopefully there's still some steak.”
With that, Carol turned toward the trailhead, a map crinkling softly in her pocket as she walked.
>> on to Pike O’Stickle >>
The trailhead was quieter than Carol expected. With each step she took, the voices behind her became softer until they were just background noise.
The first incline hit quickly and forced her legs to remember what they were for. Carol welcomed the burn. It was honest. Predictable. No politics, no performance, no wondering whether she’d misread a situation or disappointed someone...this was just gravity and muscle.
She paused at a switchback, resting a hand rest a pine tree. The air smelled clean…earthy. She closed her eyes for a moment, letting the quiet settle into her bones.
You’re still here.
Carol started climbing again, pushing herself even harder as the train increased its intensity. It forced her to focus on her footing, which felt good to have something simple to solve. This was just rock, root, step, breath and repeat.
Halfway up the next rise, she stopped again to check out the view. A slight smile appeared on her face as she looked over the valley. She saw tiny shapes of crew members moving around. From up here, they looked… peaceful. Whole. Like a family she wasn’t sure she knew how to step back into.
Carol exhaled slowly. “Okay,” Carol mumbled. “One thing at a time.”
She adjusted her pack, took a drink of water, and continued toward the ridge, and maybe...just maybe...if she was lucky, she would find a version of herself that didn’t feel... feel quite so stuck.
By the time Carol reached the top, her mind had finally quieted and her legs were trembling. She felt satisfied that she’d pushed hard enough. She dropped her pack and sat down on a boulder, her knees bent, her arms wrapped around them. With every breath she exhaled, she could feel the tension she was carrying, begin to release. The feeling she had right now started something within her she hadn't felt in some time. A feeling that she used to chase in far less healthy ways. There were a lot of late nights for Carol which sometimes resulted in a hookup that felt like a good idea until the next day. She still liked to unwind with a drink, but she was trying to steer herself with more intention now.
Maybe that was why not getting the position nod hurt. She wasn’t perfect, still probably made some impulsive choices, but with skills in tactical and security, she had learned that she could adapt, and her helm skills were still at the top. But Carol took it hard, feeling like she’d been benched?
She sat on the boulder, letting the wind blow at her hair. The quiet wasn’t comforting at first. But as she sat there, she felt the truth she’d been avoiding.
I wanted it. Shit.
She didn’t know how long she sat there. She stood, rolling her shoulders back, feeling the strength in her legs and the steadiness returning to her breath. Maybe she wasn’t done. Maybe she was just in the middle of the climb.
== need to rest before climbing back down.. phew! ==