Phantom of the Mountain Trail || Georgia & Mikhail
Now that the sun had set and the work day was done, Georgia had all the time in the world... to eat dinner, maybe shower, and then turn in early for work again tomorrow. Ranch work started at the crack of dawn, after all, so she needed all the shuteye she could get to be at 100%. Best to be bright eyed and bushy tailed when dealing with rowdy animals and customers, rather than being a cranky, caffeine craving, sleep deprived mess.
But in spite of her being aware of that, Georgia still decides to forgo her usual routine to head out of town instead, eager to go out and watch (maybe catch) a few fireflies. They only ever came out in the summertime, which wouldn’t be lasting for too much longer now. With the end of the season soon approaching, this was one of her last few chances to go out and see them before the weather got too cold.
All she has to guide her along the darkened mountain trail is a small flashlight and the gentle glow of the moon. While she walks, Georgia playfully hums in tune with the chirping cicadas, her eyes lighting up when she catches the flickering light of a firefly floating not too far ahead of her. As she moves deeper into the mountain, she begins to see more, and the rancher briefly considers pulling out her jar to catch a few.
But before she can start to dig around in her bag for said jar, she hears the sound of footsteps behind her. Light, but noticeable. Enough to draw her attention and have her look over her shoulder...
...only to scream when she’s met with the sight of a white haired, pale faced person under the moonlight. What was THAT!? A wraith!? Spirit? Or a---
“G-g-g-ghost!?” She squawks, hastily stumbling away and tripping over her own feet in the process. As Georgia’s rear painfully meets with the ground, she tries to scoot back, only to look up and realize the thing she’d been trying to get away from wasn’t a ghost at all... it was... was... “M-Mikhail...?” What was he doing out on the mountain path so late? “You... I... w-what...”
And here she was, overreacting as always and making a total fool out of herself in front of him. Great going, Georgia.