

The sun now peeked out from its place of respite below the horizon. It was going to get hot, and so far the patrol had no luck in the traditional hunting grounds. Rainwhisker could sense her leader was becoming discouraged, although her pride would never allow her to vocalize a defeat of morale, her face gave it all away.
“It’s getting fairly warm, do you think we should…” Mothstar began, obviously attempting temptation into a regrettable return to camp. Rainwhisker shook her head.
“Let’s head down to the river! A splash in the water might do us both some good. I’ve seen some fish upstream the north rapids. We might even fish up an early lunch?” Rainwhisker shouldered Mothstar, as if her energy could be tangibly exchanged.
“Ah, if you can stomach the taste of those slimy beasts, I won’t say no,” Mothstar conceded easily.
The pair kept to the shade as they trekked northward, conversation remained sparse, as the two were more preoccupied in keeping their ears forward and their noses keen to prey.
“Do you visit the river often?” Rainwhisker probed after considering her previous response to be tinged with unduly hostility towards perhaps the most useful facet of the landscape. Rainwhisker herself had grown up in the valley to the north where cats of all creed relied on the river for sustenance. Rainwhisker found it difficult to imagine a life without the river. What could Mothstar possibly drink without it?
“Oh, no. Of course when the heat gets the best of me I dip my paws in, but I remember all too well the spring floods. Well, in my case I suppose it’s spring flood, singular. The last memorable one happened when I was a kit. Back then I lived with the twolegs, but I saw how it affected the cats who fled to the twoleg park. They lost their homes.” Mothstar spoke freely about her past and fears, which came as a pleasant surprise to Rainwhisker.
“I’ve heard tales of the havoc, but I have also heard that perhaps the flood is the cause of the lush vegetation.” Rainwhisker relayed a rumor she had heard from a few credible sources and several gossips, hoping for some kind of input from Mothstar, who offered only a shrug in reply.
The duo kept walking towards the river in silence, one with cautious optimism and the other’s entirely unbridled.
[ 400 words ]
--level 0
experience: 36
--inventory
prey | # of FP | x0
prey | # of FP | x0
prey | # of FP | x0
Alder bark | usage | x1
herb | usage | x0
herb | usage | x0
--items in inventory used
N/A