Pine moved back from the half-eaten eagle while Rain took a bite. The gray she-cat licked her chops before nodding at Pine. Pine took a bite from the eagle and swallowed hungrily. The patrol from earlier had left him famished.
Rain laughed. "You're eating like you haven't seen a piece of caught-prey in moons!" She took another bite of the eagle. "Are you okay?"
Pine nodded absently and forced himself to smile at the she-cat. "Yeah," he murmured, taking another bite. He was not okay. His sister and her friends had not yet returned from their trip. He had tried to ask Roar for more details, but the tiny tom-kit had been too distracted by their game to pay attention to him. He looked around the cave, wondering if he should tell one of the prey-hunters or cave-guards.
The she-cat narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "Really?" she asked. Pine hated when she acted this way. She could always tell when he was in trouble, but her advice was not always the best.
He looked down at his paws. "I'm full, actually," he meowed, standing up. Rain cocked her head to one side, confused.
"Are you sure?" she asked. "You seemed pretty hungry a few moments ago."
Pine shook his head. "I just need to take a nap. That walk left me pretty tired." And hungry, he thought, a bit regretfully. As much as he wanted to eat, talking to Rain was not something he wanted to do.
"Okay," Rain meowed with a shrug. "I'll tell Lark—" Rain stopped. "Where is Lark?"
Pine tried to shrug casually. "I dunno," he murmured. Rain stood up and looked around.
"And Snow. I haven't seen them since dawn."
Pine hated Rain's concerned tone of voice. I'll tell one of the older cats. They'll know what to do. He felt odd accepting help from Rain. As much as he liked her, getting her involved would end up being a catastrophe. She'll want to run into the blizzard after them. Or she'll come up with some ridiculous plot to find them.
"Let's go ask Wing," Rain suggested, bounding over to the prey-hunter's area. He saw the gray-and-white she-cat talking Stormfur. I hope they're not talking about me, he thought as they approached. He felt a pang of guilt at the thought. He should be focused on his sister.
"Stormfur! Wing!" Rain called as she ran over. She almost tripped over a sleeping hollow as she skidded to a halt in front of them. Pine jumped over, wondering how Rain could be so clumsy.
Wing narrowed her eyes at Pine. "Yes?" she asked. Stormfur smiled apologetically at Pine. Another cat trying to make me feel better about Wing.
"Snow and Lark are missing," Rain meowed, panting. The two prey-hunters exchanged worried glances. "I haven't seen then since dawn."
Nodding, Pine continued the story. "I think they went outside," he offered, trying not to look at Wing.
Stormfur looked at the two to-bes. "Flight left at sun-high," he murmured. "Maybe Snow and Lark followed them." His amber eyes were wide with fear.
"Flight and Snow…" Wing meowed. Her voice sounded concerned, but Pine could tell that she was trying to hide her frustration. She looked at the cave entrance. "I'll go tell Stoneteller," she meowed. Stormfur followed her silently.
Rain seemed shaken, as if the news about Snow's disappearance had finally hit her. He felt guilt well up inside him as she nudged the ground with a paw. I should have told everyone earlier. Then we could have gone after them.
Pine nudged his friend's cheek. "Do you want to go finish the eagle?" he asked.
Rain smiled slightly. "Sure," she murmured.
He walked back towards the eagle with Rain. As reckless as she is, she could still use some care. Maybe then she won't make so many bad decisions.