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"Yeah, that would be great," Setsuko responded light-heartedly. As if to viciously agree, her stomach emitted a bone-rattling growl. The young Airbender grinning sheepishly, but a goofy light remained kindled in her stormy eyes. "...I'm pretty hungry! I'll go see if I can help Jaci catch more fish."

With that, the girl pranced over to the lakeside where her companion noisily darted in the water, large, drooping splashes shattering the once-smooth glasslike surface.

Rue gave a brief nod then began hunting for dry wood and kindling. Plenty of the trees in the forest near the lake were dry and had easy-to-snap-off branches. Gathering an armful, the hybrid soon stumbled upon some dead moss and grass as well. Then it was just a matter of setting up the fire and getting it started. Setting it up was easy - she had camped out so many times the action was almost second-nature.

Gathering two rocks, she began scraping them together in quick, short motions, trying to get a spark. Finally, flame began to dance between the thin branches that made up the fuel for the fire. Eagerly, Rue blew on it, strengthening the flame. It wasn't long before the fire was crackling cheerfully, ringed by small stones.

Rue also had the forethought to get a few more sticks, scraping off the outer layer of bark to reveal the clean wood underneath. These they could use to hold the fish over the fire. Glancing back at Setsuko, Rue called out, "I've got the fire going. You almost done?"

"Yeah, just a sec!" Setsuko laughed from the pond, now thoroughly drenched from the splashing with Jaci. "I think a certain stupid feline here chased away all the fish with his splashing, though! We didn't catch anything."

The words weren't spoken harshly, but rather with a sense of friendly teasing as the girl grinned at her companion. Jaci yowled contentedly, wading out of the once crystal-clear waters now murkied with underwater dust which slowly settled. Setsuko followed him out, forcing the sopping wetness off her with a burst of air. Jaci used a..."shakier" technique.

"Ah, that's better! All dry!" said Setsuko...but that was before she caught sight of Rue, who had been caught up in the dispelling of water and now was the soaked one.

"Oops! Sorry!" Setsuko gasped, grinning awkwardly, a blush of embarrassment creeping across her face. She flung some wind in the bird-girl's direction like a very powerful hairdryer, though to be honest, she'd never really tried to dry off anyone other than herself. "You ok?"

Rue was first spattered with water, then hit with a rather strong gust of wind. Though she knew Setsuko had meant well, she had obviously underestimated her strength, as Rue was nearly toppled from her position by the fire. As it was, the wind grabbed at her ponytail, tangling the once tied-back hair until it resembled a birds' nest...no pun intended.
Rue glanced at Setsuko, raising an eyebrow dryly, though a lighthearted glint remained in her eyes. "Well, other than being hit by a miniature tornado," she responded teasingly, "I'm fine."

"Heh, sorry," Setsuko repeated, holding out her hands to help Rue up. "But at least we still have some fish, right? Let's see if they really do taste as good as the water!"

Rue took Setsuko's hand, easily pulling herself up. She retied her hair, fixing the frizziness and tangles temporarily. Her stomach growled as she stuck a fish on a stick and held it over the fire, the meat beginning to sizzle. "We'll have to try fishing again later, though. Or find food of some sort. I need a lot of calories..."

Setsuko shrugged. "Ok, sure," she agreed. "Jaci really is a good fisher when he's not being a goofball. It's in his breed." The young Airbender grinned at her feline friend. The Blue Lion gave a brief, contenting rumble that may have been his imitation of a purr before tearing back into the fish at his paws. Being an animal, he preferred his meat raw.

Setsuko stood in her place, obsering her surroundings. A soft brush of natural wind surrounded her, filling her with a deep inhale. It carried a rich, wet scent, something akin to the earth after it rains.

"We might wanna eat quick," the Airbender announced, suddenly somewhat seriously. "I think there might be a storm coming." She glanced around. They could get back to the cabin quickly if they flew, but surely they couldn't fly safely in a storm, so they'd have to leave quickly. The other option was to walk though the forest by foot, and though the trees would offer some protection, those few minutes probably wouldn't be comfortable.

Continuing her scan, she noticed a small opening in the towering rocky cliff that stood just beyond the lake. A cave! Perfect; that would make an excellent second-try if the storm came too soon.

Rue nodded, and held the fish closer to the fire. By the time it was fully cooked, a dark smudge was visible on the horizon; storm clouds were approaching. Rue pulled out a pocket knife and sliced the meat roughly in thirds, giving a piece to Setsuko and Jaci. Rue ate her's in a matter of seconds; considering she had once downed 12 Snickers bars in a bit under a minute, however, it wasn't as impressive as it could've been.

Setsuko stared wide-eyed as Rue so quickly devoured her fish. And she thought she was a speedy eater!

"Hungry?" the airbender questioned expectantly, still staring at the girl.

A rumbled sounded in the distance. Right, no time to waste! Setsuko took a bite out of her fish, chewing as quickly as possible, though she couldn't manage to top Rue in speed. She absentmindedly stroked Jaci's course gray pelt as she chewed, the young feline eagerly crunching on a tough fin.

Rue's freckled cheeks flushed lightly as she stared at the bones now in her hands. "I, uh, have a really fast metabolism. I need to eat more than regular people," she explained. Speaking of which...while the fish had filled her for the time being, they would need to hunt more if she was going to survive. Sure, she had managed to make it a few days in the desert before with nothing but a few lizards and a questionable piece of cactus fruit, but then she had required an IV...not exactly something she would like to experience again.

Glancing at the thick forest off to one side, and the large lake nearby, Rue was reassured by the fact that there would at least be plenty of food to find. She could manage, then; her mother had taught her well, after all. She stood, wiping her greasy fingers on her already grimy jeans, glancing up at the sky.

It was already growing much darker, long bands of storm clouds stretching towards them like greedy fingers. They weren't close enough to be dangerous, but they were approaching quickly. "We need to hurry if we're planning to fly back," Rue noted, glancing back down at Setsuko.

"Mmmm-aaaay, usss uh se-und," replied Setsuko, mouth still full to the brim with her massive final bite. Chewing a few more times and then managing to swallow, she stood, licking her first three fingers to clear them. Jaci stood, too, shaking his massive pelt and stretching before straightening next to his master.

"Ready," said the girl, reaching for her glider. As her hand made contact with the wooden rod, she felt a light drop on the back, followed by another plummeting into her windblown hair. "Looks like the storm's already here," she noted somewhat grimly as the droplets quickly picked up in density and velocity. "I don't know if I'll be able to fly all the way back to the cabin in this; rain soaks the wings of my glider and makes it hard to stay airborne." She looked around. Might there be somewhere closer for them to take shelter?

Her eyes caught site of an opening in the cliff on just the other site of the lake. A cave, maybe?

"Let's try up there, if that's ok," she suggested, pointing to the thin, dark opening.

Of course they couldn't fly back now. Joy. Rue let out a heavy sigh, quickly shaking off the feeling of minor frustration. She glanced over to where Setsuko was pointing at, brown eyes quickly picking out the distinct indentation in the cliff wall, marking the site of a cave, or at least an overhang. Either way, they would get out of this darn rain.

She nodded, spreading her tawny wings. She didn't bother running, instead leaping straight up in the air and flapping hard. She was soon speeding across the lake, allowing her sneakers to skim the surface just for the fun of it.

Setsuko unfurled her glider wings and prepared to take off when a thought suddenly occurred to her. Jaci! There was no way he'd be able to make it to the cave. He was too heavy to fly with her and there's no way she'd risk her dear friend having him swim across the lake during a lightning storm!

"Jaci, run back to the cabin," she instructed, thinking fast. "We'll be back as soon as possible. Hurry!" And with that, she took off after Rue, using as much air as she could to accelerate faster and faster. Rain pattered against the thick fabric wings. Almost there, almost there...

With a startling speed, the airbender hurled herself into the cave, yelping at how quickly the wall moved towards her and almost automatically responding with a wimpy cushion of air. Despite the sudden support, though, she still managed to bang her head pretty well, glider clattering out of her hands. She quickly snatched it back, blushing slightly as she rubbed her sore head. What an embarrassing crash! Oh well, at least she was dry now.

The cave was a bit smaller than she'd expected. She and Rue would both still fit, but it might be a bit cramped. Perhaps it was good that Jaci couldn't reach it. The hard rock floor was dank and cool; the angle of the crack must prevent it from seeing much sunlight. At the back of the cave a large gray boulder loomed, at the top of which was a tiny opening. I bet that leads to a larger cave, or something, Setsuko thought. Too bad it's too small to access.

Rue landed quite a bit more gracefully, touching down with a familiarity that spoke of years of practice. "You don't have a concussion, do you?" she asked, noticing the rather hard hit Setsuko's head had taken. Well, at least Rue wasn't the only one who had run into something now. The avian hybrid sat down quickly, frowning at how small the space was. At least it wasn't a dog crate.

"Um...no, I don't think so," replied the young airbender. "Just a sore skull. I'm usually better at landing, though," she added quickly, not wanting to make a complete fool of herself.