Once Ele left Ebere lying under that tree, he wandered off in a sort of daze, drifting for a few moments. Until he stumbled over a rock. "Ow, damn," he yelped, somehow managing to catch himself before falling over completely. Shivering just a bit at the near-miss, the leopard shook his head. He needed to pay attention if he was going to be catching -anything-. Not to mention, he should probably find Pich. He wasn't sure how long they'd been in the cave, but she might be worried ... and he would probably need her help to find breakfast. Lifting his head a bit, the leopard sniffed around, getting his bearings again. Then he started off toward where he had left Pich that morning, being more careful now.


Pich was worried now. Ele'd been gone a rather long time. Had he fallen into something and couldn't get out? Had someone snuck up on him? All the horrible possibilities out there had run themselves through PIch's blue and silver head before she caught Ele's scent and perked up. HAHA! She bounced to her paws and ran out to meet her friend. "Ele!" Her tail wagged happily, and the relief in her voice was almost tangible. "Welcome back! You have fun?" As she spoke, she looked over him for injuries or signs of a fight. "Meet anyone new?"


Ele shuffled his feet just a little at that. He couldn't exactly -lie- to Pich after all. She was his best friend. "Well ... it sort of started out fun. But it wasn't all fun. I did meet someone, though ..." Had she been able to see under his dark fur, the leopard was actually blushing a bit when he thought of Ebere.


Pich blinked. Had...oh dear. What had happened? "What happened? You didn't get hurt, right?" Ele's safety was always high on her list of priorities. The highest, in fact. "Oh? What someone like? Good, bad? Had to go?" She figured there was a reason the someone hadn't come with Ele. But the possibility that he'd made another friend outside of her was a wonderful one! There were too many out there who would look down on Ele, just for a fluke of birth.


Oh dear... she always did ask lots of questions all at once. "Uhm... well, I met this lioness. Her name is Ebere... she's really nice. But while we were trying to find breakfast we... kind of fell into a hole. Into a cave, I think." Ele shook his fur out slightly. "I didn't get hurt, but Ebere hurt her paw falling down. But then I led us out!" This last bit was said proudly, his chest puffing out a bit.


"That's wonderful!" She nuzzled Ele. "Is sad Miss Ebere hurt her paw, but is wonderful you were able to lead her out!" When Ele did things like that, it made Pich proud, knowing her friend didn't always need her eyes. Some might have been disappointed, but not Pich! She was the one searching for a way to give him sight, after all. "Did you and Miss Ebere find breakfast? If not, Pich help!"


"Ah ... we hadn't yet. I left her resting under a tree a ways back," he said with a slight smile. Then he remembered Ebere's ... thing... with canines and winced slightly. "Pich ... Ebere is really really scared of canines because of something that happened when she was little. So ... I'd like your help finding some breakfast, but it might be bad if you went close to her..."


Pich drooped a bit. Someone...scared of those like her. Oh...Hmph! She bucked up. DIdn't mean she couldn't help find food! 'Specially if it meant a lot to Ele! "Pich will be good and stay from sight and smell!" Maybe, eventually, Ele's new friend could see her and not be scared? "Let's find breakfast!" And she started sniffing about for the telltale signs of prey.


Ele smiled at that - glad that Pich didn't seem too upset about it. He'd been kind of afraid that she would be really disappointed. "All right... " he said after a moment. "What should we hunt?" Pich was better at seeing the signs of what sort of prey might be around the area. He was better at sniffing out where exactly the prey was.


Pich 'hmm'ed and 'huh'ed as she looked and sniffed, then nodded. "Lots of hare. Some gazelle." She nudged Ele. "Hares are ALL over." One needed more hares to make a meal but...they were easier to catch, and less likely to gouge or gore something from Ele.


The leopard nodded quickly at that. Smaller things were -much- easier for he and Pich to catch, though they had gone after larger preybeasts before. "Hare should be fine," he agreed. "Three or four, maybe..."


Pich chuckled. "Yeah! And with the way this area looks...the hares are fat!" She licked her chops. She'd need to catch a couple for herself. "Fat hares are REALLY easy to catch and tasty~" She started sniffing for the general direction of a hare den. They were always easier to catch in their dens.


Ele smiled at that and also started sniffing about carefully - poking his nose into the air. "This way, I think... lots of hare-smelling things over there."


Pich blinked and followed. "Ooooo...Ele's nose is right as usual!" Lots of hare-smells now, and one ran past...She'd been right. Fat. She grinned. Rabbit munchies were good~ "Definitely in the right area, since one ran past just now."


The leopard nodded at that. "I heard it..." he replied, having turned his head in the direction the rabbit went. "Den is that way, I think..." Padding carefully toward a little rise where he could hear the tiny squeaks and rustlings of a family of rabbits.


Pich followed silently, tail actually still. She was a little sad that it was a family in there but...they were food. With a quiet voice, she leaned to Ele so the hares wouldn't hear her. "You feel like doing the digging this time, and I'll catch as they come out?" It tended to be effective.


Ele purred softly at that in agreement. Then he darted toward the den and started digging at the dirt to scare the rabbits out into the open.


As hares came out of the den, Pich snapped at them, catching some, others getting away. Even fat, hares were fast creatures. But eventually, there was a nice pile of them and Pich's muzzle was stained red. "Got 'em! Pich thinks we should leave before they figure out there's more of them than us though..."


Ele broke off scaring the rabbits out once Pich called to him... they were probably all gone anyway. Smiling, he went over to where his friend waited and sniffed at that pile. "You got a lot!"


Pich puffed up a bit, proud of herself. "Pich wanted to make sure Ele and Miss Ebere had lots of hares!" Maybe it would help Ebere like her one day! "Pich even got a couple for herself, so Ele doesn't have to worry about Pich."


Ele moved to nuzzle at Pich a bit, purring at his friend. "That's good... I'll take some of these to Ebere now, and then I'll come back later, okay?"


Pich nodded. "Alrighty! Be safe!" Now that she knew where he was going, Pich wasn't nearly as worried. Oh, there would always be SOME worry...but he was her friend. She couldn't help it.