Quote:
Originally Posted by Thistledawn
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. |
Spark lifted a paw and swiped at Silence's head, claws tearing through one of her ears. He released her, and the force of the blow sent her carrening across the small clearing. Pain blinded her for several seconds, but when she scrambled to her feet, she stared the tom down, blood from her ruined ear dripping into her eyes.
Spark stalked towards her, slowly. "This is unlike you, Silence. Why aren't you vanishing into the woods, like you used to? I do so miss those little games of chase we used to play." A slight movement from the den caught her eye, and worry, however briefly, flashed across her face. Spark's sharp ice eyes caught it, and he whipped around. "Unless you're protecting something." Before he could advance any further, Silence darted around him, planting herself between him and the entrance to her den. She shook violently, still, but her stance was firm.
You'll have to kill me to get past.
"Oh, so you are protecting something--or should I say, someone. I've smelled them, all the cats that have come and go. Why protect a stranger?" He advanced, and Silence let out an eerie, scraping growl from deep in her chest.
He's my friend! I won't let you touch him, you monster.Unfazed, he towered over her, a slight softness returning to his cold eyes. "If you come back quietly, love, I promise I'll forget everything." His tail came up and caressed her face, gently. Silence flinched and snapped at it, but he pulled away again.