Sandra padded through the forest alone. She had already been on a patrol, but she had to get out and just walk through the forest for a bit. She wanted to head toward the lake and see the sun's light reflecting off the surface.
When she emerged on the lake shore, she spotted Hollyleaf near the edge of the trees, tasting the air. She looked a bit hurt and left out so Sandra approached her.
"Hi, Hollyleaf," she greeted. "What are you doing here all by yourself? Didn't you go out with Lionblaze?"
"I was out with him but then Jayfeather and Dovewing came along. They all needed to talk in private without me," Hollyleaf replied, a hint of sadness in her voice.
Sandra blinked with sympathy. "Well, since they left you alone, mind if I tag along with you? I had to get out of camp."
Hollyleaf smiled, looking happy to have company. "Of course. Let's see if we can find a plump squirrel for the fresh-kill pile."
Sandra licked her lips. "Let's make it two plump squirrels!" Hollyleaf smiled with amusement before tasting the air again.
"I found a fresh scent. Come on!" Hollyleaf led the way silently through the trees. She halted and Sandra spotted the squirrel nibbling away at a nut.
"I'll chase it right into your paws if you circle around the other side of it," Sandra whispered.
Hollyleaf nodded and padded silently away. Sandra gave her a moment to get into position. When she was sure Hollyleaf was ready Sandra dashed out of the bushes and chased the squirrel toward where Hollyleaf was hiding. Hollyleaf soon leaped out and grabbed the squirrel by the neck, killing it quickly.
Sandra purred. "Mousefur should love that."
Hollyleaf nodded her agreement. "Purdy will definately welcome it too. Let's see if we can find anything else!"
"I'd love to find a rabbit! Chasing it would give me a chance to stretch," Sandra meowed, pricking her ears and tasting the air.
"I think you're in luck. There's a fresh scent coming from over there," Hollyleaf meowed, flicking her tail toward some bushes. Sandra nodded and crept toward the bush. She picked up the scent Hollyleaf had detected. That's definately a rabbit. She poked her head through the bush and saw the fluffy white creature. Before the rabbit saw her she pounced. The rabbit almost got away from her but she managed to pin it down and kill it with a swift bite to the neck. Hollyleaf came up beside her carrying her squirrel.
"Let's get this prey back to camp. The elders will eat good tonight," she purred.
Sandra nodded her agreement and followed Hollyleaf back to camp. They put their prey on the pile and sat down to share tongues. Sandra turned her attention to the camp entrance as Alex and Madoka came in. She signaled to them with her tail. The two trotted up to her carrying some comfrey leaves.
"What's that for?" Sandra asked.
"Well, Jayfeather needed more comfrey so we thought we'd get some for him," Alex replied.
"Jayfeather isn't really the easiest cat to get along with," Madoka meowed.
"I agree with you on that one," Hollyleaf chipped in. "Even being his sister doesn't change his bossy attitude toward you. But he sure knows what he's doing. He may be blind but he can run through the forest as if he could see."
Sandra smiled. "His senses are probably pretty sharp."
"Well, we're going to go talk to Briarlight. She knows Jayfeather pretty well and seems to get along with him. She might be able to help us," Madoka meowed as the two padded off. As soon as they walked off Sandra saw Kyoya enter camp.
"Hey, Kyoya! Come and meet Hollyleaf!" she called. Kyoya padded over and sat beside her. "Kyoya, this is Hollyleaf. Hollyleaf, this is Kyoya."
"Nice to meet you," Hollyleaf meowed, dipped her head in greeting.
Kyoya just nodded. Sandra leaned over and whispered in Hollyleaf's ear, "He doesn't say much." Hollyleaf nodded. Kyoya eyed Sandra and lightly cuffed her over the ear.
"Sure, but at least I'm not a chatterbox," he joked.
"I know, but I'm supposed to pick on you," Sandra meowed, licking his cheek.
"Well, I'm going to turn in early," Kyoya meowed, getting up. "Are you coming?"
"I'll be with you in a moment," Sandra promised. Kyoya nodded and padded off.
Hollyleaf smiled with amusement. "You like him, don't you?" she asked.
"Yeah, I do," Sandra confessed. "He acts tough but he can be really sweet."
"I bet," Hollyleaf purred. She then got to her paws. "Well, I'm going to get some rest. We should hunt together again sometime."
Sandra nodded in agreement as Hollyleaf headed into the warriors' den. Sandra went over to were Kyoya was lying and curled up beside him. She yawned and sleep engulfed her.