Quote:
Originally Posted by Raindancer
Once she was sure Hoot was gone, Silence took deep breaths, calming herself as much as she could. Conjuring up every ounce of will she had, she forced her paws to move farther into the clearing, where the cat who haunted her nightmares sat, paitently waiting. He was a normal sized tom, mottled black and white with pale blue eyes, like ice. A long scar curved around his left ear and over his eye, though it was white with age. He perked when he saw her, standing and trotting over as if they were old friends. When he spoke, it was a deep rumble in the back of this throat, almost like thunder. "I've finally found you."
Though she couldn't hear him, when he started to speak the little black she-cat shook like her bones were trying to rattle out of her skin. When the tom reached his head down to touch hers, she flinched away, stepping backwards and baring her teeth in a soundless snarl. Don't you dare touch me! Her ears flattened against her head, bright orange eyes a mixture of fear and hostility. You are not welcome here, Spark. Leave.
Spark's head receded in surprise, his eyes gleaming with genuine hurt. "Silence, do you know how many moons I've searched for you?" He leaned down to nuzzle her again, and she snapped at him, teeth just missing his face. Both cats froze in shock, and Spark's eyes grew dark. Moving like a snake, he had the little she-cat pinned within a heartbeat, staring down at her with unbridled rage. "You still fight me?? After everything? I named you! I took you in when your family left you to die! And how do you repay me? With a scar and this ungrateful attitude." He snarled, leaning over her. Silence refused to cower, twisting under him in an attempt to free herself.
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There was hardly anything louder than Hoot's heart thundering in his chest. Waiting was only making it worse. Hoot's paws were shaking. He tried to squeeze himself into a corner to try to stop the shaking, but it didn't help one bit. Other than his own heart, the tom couldn't hear anything. It seemed like moons passed before he finally heard his voice. It wasn't Silence's. He knew that for sure. This voice was clear and was obviously used. It was masculine and deep and somehow managed to become louder than the sound of Hoot's racing heart in his ears. Hearing the voice had made the tom stop breathing for a few heartbeats. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know this cat nor did he know the danger he posed. Silence, who seemed welcoming of strangers, was terrified of this other cat. The cat who had welcomed Hoot into her territory and her den with his bad attitude and suspicion, was not welcoming this newcomer like she had welcomed Hoot. He had to be pretty awful.
There was a silence after the tom spoke. Silence is speaking, Hoot thought. The silence was almost worse than being able to hear. Hoot couldn't see Silence and therefore couldn't tell what she was saying. He willed his body to move to a place where he could see, but his body had no response. He remained planted where he was. Hoot closed his green eyes and angled his ears towards the two cats out in the clearing. He tried to focus on the sounds coming from them instead of the voice in his head telling him to run.
Hoot hardly even noticed his body moving in the same heartbeat he heard a thump. He hadn't crossed all the way into the clearing. The sound of Silence's voice, panicked, shaken, and afraid stopped him from doing something as reckless as that. Well, that and the abundant fear that Hoot was feeling. But the Abyssinian could see the two cats now. His breath caught in his throat as he saw Silence on the ground, thrashing about in attempt to get free from the tom's grasp. The sight of the tom leaning over Silence like that should have either sent him running, or made him dash to help her. But Hoot was frozen in fear even more so now that before, if that was even possible. Again, the tan colored tom willed himself forward, but was met with failure. Instead, he willed his strength forward, as if it would leave his body and be absorbed by Silence. Hoot felt helpless.