We trudged single file, keeping close to the trees, though unable to blend in. It seemed a long night. The Swift Star shot by twice. Bats arrived frequently, whipping over our heads, sometimes dipping. More of my body solidified, all the joints and crevices, until movement felt alien. I pushed ahead, afraid to stop and get stuck, like a boulder set to weather years. On the plus side, the cold no longer bothered me, any more than it bothered rocks.