She began the search again. Closer to the warm tunnel this time. She'd been hoping that the warm tunnel had attracted lessers, as it attracted her. She'd found lessers, alright. A pitchrat, searching around the tunnel as she had. And where there was one, there were sure to be more. She raised her head. Searching for others. They weren't around. She needed to dispatch this one quickly, before more came.

Catalyst approached what she thought was downwind. Low to the ground. The pitchrat seemed occupied, sniffing around. It hadn't looked in her direction yet. She'd been lucky so far. She hoped it would hold out. She waited. She needed to watch as the rat went through its motions. Tried to pin a pattern down on the creature. It would sniff, then raise its head. Trot in a random direction. She needed to strike when it was sniffing. It trotted away. She waiting. It raised its head. Sniffed. Now!

Catalyst leapt from her spot, charging the rat. It noticed at the last moment, and turned to face her, teeth bared. She hissed back, and then they were in combat. Catalyst aimed to end this as quick as possible. A clawed foot to the throat, swiftly dispatching. But the rat was fast, it struggled. It let out noises that made her skin raise. But no other rats came. They were noises of rage and combat. After fighting the struggling creature for what felt like hours, her claw stuck an artery within the rat. It collapsed. She stood, heaving. She'd done it.

She skinned the rat, afterwards. The blood had taken a while to drain. But everything else was familiar. She was left with a whole, if dirty pelt. She picked it up with her teeth, wincing at the taste of the rat's matted hair. But a pelt was still a pelt. And it was warm. She shook herself out, and trotted into the warm tunnel, feeling her skin prickle at the blasts of heat.

;exit catalyst FINALLY

She returned to Ursa, trotting at a brisk pace. She was afraid to travel too fast, lest the smoke burn her eyes or the speed and cold snuff the flame. Nor too slow, lest the fire consume or die out before she'd finished. There was a urgency to her movements. Not true panic, no, for Mother dulled such negative emotions. She returned to the forest where she'd hidden her cache of furs. Relieved to see them untouched, though she sniffed the hole, just to make sure. She sighed out a soft 'chrr' once she'd been satisfied.

She shook her rat hide off, hiding it amongst her cache of valuables. It wasn't many furs. But she hoped it'd help. With that finished, Catalyst needed to find a place to hide her bush. She raised up, till her tail was nearly vertical. Gold eyes nearly slit as she took in the bright snow. It didn't take her long to find. It was almost instantaneous. She wondered how she'd missed it before. A overhang of rock, a section of ground.

Protecting the dry earth beneath. It was too narrow for her to fit beneath, but it'd be perfect for the fire. She placed it, gentle, making sure most of the fire didn't touch the ground. She snapped roots from the overhead, feeding them into the flame. They were small bits of tinder on a still green bush. She had her doubts on how long it'd last. Her head reared back, and she clicked. She was tempted to stay here, warm by the fire. It'd only last minutes, like that. A blip of...something entered her awareness. She turned, swiftly. They felt familiar. The feeling, ironically, was alien. "Whos there...?" She said, after a trio of clicks.

@Morpho