[occultation]

( @chickadee @GhostlyStarfinder )

His patrolmates had taken so long to show up that Creekchill had ended up wandering off, wondering if he could get away with skipping this patrol. His hopes were dashed when both Redspring and Beastpaw eventually showed up. He had half a mind to chastise them both for being so late, but he knew that would make him a bit of a hypocrite.

So, instead, he lead them both out to the Sky Glade without saying a word. He did want them to know he was annoyed with them, but he also didn't want to turn it into too big of a deal.

Once they arrived at the Sky Glade, he cast them both a glance. "We'll go our own ways and see what we can find. Don't waste time, we're already behind." Heh, "Don't waste time!" was not a phrase that frequently came out of Creekchill's mouth. But, he wasn't interested in getting a patrol punishment. Hopefully Fallownose was in a good mood and would allow them to report a few minutes late.

The brown-and-cream tom went off in his own direction, mouth open to scent for prey. He eventually caught the scent of a mouse. Not much, but at least he wouldn't come back empty-pawed. Upon seeing little tracks in the dirt, he dropped into a hunting crouch and followed them.

The mouse wasn't too far away, munching on some seeds. With an efficient and quick leap, Creekchill captured the small creature in his jaws and brought its life to a swift end. Burying the mouse to retrieve later, he went searching for more.

Several more minutes of searching produced no additional scent trails, so he resigned himself to just bringing this mouse back. If Fallownose wanted to complain, he'd just let the words go in one ear and out the other. At least he was actually out here in the cold trying.

Grabbing his mouse, he went back to wait for the others.

( As a heads up, this patrol will be reported in the evening on January 9th, probably around 5:00 PM Pacific. Don't worry about posting order, just get your post in before then! I'll try to remember to bump you guys if needed but I may forget )