The nice thing about the pine forest, Shadepaw'd learned while training in the hollow, is that leaf-bare doesn't strip the trees barren. No, even now, the pine needles adorning the branches overhead kept the bright, crisp sunlight from reaching the forest floor below.

Each step in the thin coating of snow underfoot - most of the flakes were caught into the trees high above - revealed the thick layers of pine needles underneath; it produced an odd, muffled crunch that was barely audible in spite of the stillness of the woods. It was really, really neat to see.

He rubbed up against the sturdy bark of a nearby tree, purring softly as it scratched just the right way, soothing an itch that'd been bothering him for a bit since an accidental tumble down a slope on the way here.

It was just nice to get out of camp, to put distant between herself and the tenses of the clan and general toxicity of her grandparent and their family. Unfortunately, Toadfeather had been busy this evening doing all the things that deputies did and Shadepaw had been nasty to get out and stretch her legs - sure, she'd tagged along with a patrol earlier that day, but still...

Staying in camp didn't feel like an option. Would he get in trouble? Probably. Was it worth it? Sure if he caught something...

But that was something for later, aftermath having some fun.