Blackfoot Forest A canopy of shivers

In response to Vires's questions—which leaned in a strongly pessimistic direction—Pied decided to play devil's advocate. "What if she left for a good reason—like to track a herd or go on a spiritual quest...?" She let that question linger in the frosty air a moment before adding, "Or what if she left against her will? What if she's hurt or sick and simply unable to return home? Granted, that doesn't explain the disappearance of all the others," she muttered. Lifting her eyes to look directly into Vires's, she answered the third question with an, "I honestly don't know anymore," and complemented this admission with a long, quiet sigh.

"I can't imagine Jinx would hold it against us if we took steps to safeguard ourselves against the coming winter, though, no matter what's held her up," Pied said slowly after several beats of silence. "Although I don't think she'd appreciate us giving up on her as a lost cause, she would understand that we need to take action, lest we not survive the winter." She rolled her sleek, patched shoulders as she thought out loud. "We're no good to her if we're dead, after all," she surmised in a wry, hollow voice.

The pup's noises had ceased behind her, yet Pied didn't turn around to check on her. Instead, she kept her focus on Vires. As she stared vaguely at the dark she-wolf, she remembered suddenly that she wanted to locate Hawkeye before she did anything else, including making any important decisions. Although she'd just committed herself to staying here with Vires for the night, she felt rather antsy to pinpoint her closest compatriot in Bon Dye.

"Hey, I need to go see someone. It'll only take a little while—maybe an hour or so—then I'll be back. Then we can discuss a plan. Sorry to rush off," she apologized even as she swiveled suddenly. Both the pup and the bird had vanished. "See you in a bit, Vires," she said before loping off into the dark forest, where the pup and bird eventually joined her, the former frolicking on her left and the latter winging along on her right.