Being out, having made that push, made her less afraid. Maybe it was her determination to no long be scared, maybe it was Loach and Lantana. Maybe it was being so far away from where he expected her to be. Her bror was still trapped there... but if trapped was what he wanted, then trapped he could be. Especially if he was going to be a jerk.

She tried not to think about him. With so little to do at their base camp in the Split, that seemed to be all Llinnea could do. So, today, she was going to be bold and wander off a little ways on her own. She didn't think Loach would move on and leave her behind... not right now. But if he did, she would be okay. She could fish now, and hunt hares. She'd be okay. She wouldn't miss him anyway.

Not at all.

Llinnea was pulled from her thoughts by a flash of motion out of the corner of her eye and she froze, eyes scanning the horizon for whatever it was. It moved again and Llinnea saw the shiny, round, floating thing. It appeared to be stuck in a bush. She crouched down, staring at it in fascination. What was it? She wondered if Loach or Lana would know. Curious, and wanting to practice her stalking skills, the pup crept forward.

Llinnea had been so lost in her thoughts she hadn't realized she'd been followed - an oversight that could prove to be deadly, if it had been another pursuer. Luckily, it was just her friend. The shiny thing had also absorbed all of her attention, so as she stalked closer she was still oblivious to being watched. He spoke just as she was pouncing and she flipped in mid-air, trying to see who'd spoken while keeping an eye on the shiny. She made an undignified landing, tumbling into a heap in the snow at the bottom of the brush and scrambling to her feet, snarling and ready for a fight until she saw it was just Loach.

She sniffed and straightened, still glaring, before glancing at the shiny. "It is a thing," she said.

Llinnea glanced back at the shiny as Loach spoke. He'd seen one too, but didn't know what it was? Hm. She sniffed at it, close as she was to it now. It hadn't done more than bob and weave against the gripping tangle of bush when she'd pounced and flailed. Perhaps that meant it was unafraid; maybe it was curious about them too.

Maybe it wasn't even alive.

"I was practicing hunting," she said in her usual stiff accent. "It does not seem afraid." She sat and stared at it, considering, before making a leap for it. She managed to snag part of it in her teeth and pull it down with her, only to tug against the branches and lose her grip. It slowly drifted back up and she gave a frustrated growl.

Llinnea had to agree with Loach on this one; the only thing it seemed to actually be was shiny, only she didn't have that word for it in this language. She glared as it bobbed over her, almost mockingly. "Don't want to eat," she said without looking away. "Just want to catch."

She leaped for it again, this time missing it entirely and catching a stick from the bush in her paw on her way down. She helped, holding her paw off the ground and looking at it. She growled and snapped at the bush, as if that would do anything, before chewing at the pad to pull the last of the broken-off piece of wood out. At least her Mor had taught her how to do that. When she set her foot down, it left a small bloody smear in the white snow.

Okay, shiny, now it was on.

Though her paw stung, it was already almost forgotten in her focus on the thing. She wouldn't abide by getting hurt and not making it pay for it! She growled again, planted her feet, and jumped harder. This time she got a good grip on it, yanking it down with her, only to hear a sharp pop and suddenly the silver was crinkly and flat between her teeth.

She dropped it and stepped back, staring with wide eyes and the now-limp shiny material hanging from the bush. She looked at Loach. "Hva?"