To be honest she felt a little silly asking Gil what to look for in a good denning site but if everything else was different then what she was used to then why not that as well.  She hoped that he didn’t think her too naïve about everything to help her though when they had first met and his efforts to help her to find her home she did not think that he was like that.  She felt that he genuinely wanted to help her and that was what she needed more than anything.  She wasn’t stupid and had decided a long time ago that she would make the most of any help that she was to receive because one thing was clear in this place, it was life or death.

Leotie did not hesitate to follow Gil further into the forest and she listened closely with her ears swiveled as far forward as they would go.  She didn’t want to miss anything that he said.  “That’s smart,” she said finally commenting on the staying higher than the water so she didn’t get flooded out but close enough she wouldn’t have to go far for something to drink.  “I supposed with the weather getting cooler I am going to need a nice warm place to say,” she added as she took note of the hollow that he had indicated. “That might make a good place,” she thought aloud.

Once again she was absorbing everything that Gil told her, “I’m glad they are like rabbits, I have hunted them before but it shouldn’t be too hard to pounce on them before they can run,” she told her him with some glee in her tone.  She stopped just behind him when he did and watched as he smelled the ground.  It was like she had done before so since she knew how to do that she also put her nose to the ground, “All I have to do is look for something that smells a little like rabbit?” She said double checking that she was right.

Leotie was glad that Gil was as willing as he was to help her to figure things out like the best place to make her den and how to catch squirrels. These skills would be important in the coming months which the thought of did scare her. She worried what would happen to her after she had been out in the forest for so long. She hoped the worst would be that she would be very adept at catching herself something to eat at the very least. She also knew that winter was coming and that was even more worrisome because she was alone. She wondered if she should maybe try to find herself a pack before to help her through or if she should try and stick it out on her own.

Gils words brought her out of the thoughts she’d got lost in for a moment but she did catch what he said and smiled, “Then this shouldn’t be too difficult,” she told him happy that they were doing something that she might actually succeed at. AT Gil’s motion Leotie Crouched down next to Gil, “What’s the longest you’ve ever had to wait?” She asked quietly so that she might know what an appropriate amount of time to wait was.

Though there was still so much to learn about her new life Leotie thought that she might be starting to get the hang of it. She wasn’t the best at everything but she thought she might know enough to at least have the chance to get better.

Hunting squirrels was something very new to Leotie but she felt that if she could learn the important aspects of it she could eventually become very good at it. If she could catch rabbits and squirrels then her days of extreme hunger would be over, at least she hoped that would be the case. The huger was one aspect of her new life that she didn’t think she would ever get used to. She was curious about how long it would actually take to catch a squirrel. Leotie was a little disappointed to hear Gil say he’d waited a couple of hours but it was some comfort by the fact that he thought he’d picked a bad spot. “Let’s hope this is a good spot then,” she commented in a whisper, “It should be easy to find them.” She added.

Leotie was glad they didn’t have to wait long for one to show up. It seemed they had chosen a good place to hunt squirrel after all. She watched intensely as the small creature scampered around the area. Her whole body tensed with anticipation of the meal she would hopefully soon have. Leotie felt the touch of Gil’s nose in her ruff which caused her to glance in his direction long enough to see he was silently telling her the squirrel was hers, she gave a slight nod in understanding. Then she turned her attention back to the creature before slowly creeping forward hoping the squirrel wouldn’t notice her. Then when she thought she was close enough she rose to her full height and charged. Leotie was upon the squirrel quickly but it slipped away from her. She didn’t give up that easily and instead she chased the creature until it was almost up a nearby tree and her jaws closed around it before it could run out of reach.