SkyClan Clearing

[Gull]

Originally Posted by ItsATryp

Turtlekit nodded in agreement of her sister. "Yeah, you are! I'm gonna be as great as you one day!" He bounced you and down happily.
Their mother purred loudly, her green gaze falling towards the two kits. "Thank you," she meowed. Jadefrost then noticed how ruffled the kits' pelts were. "My, what kind of playing have you been doing?" She questioned, adding, "You look as if you haven't had a wash in a moon!"

Gullkit canted her head to the side, seeing her ruffled fur! "I guess we do." The kit mewed, an ear twitching.

[Empress Of Evil]

Originally Posted by Noire

Umbraice thought about what he needed to do for the next day. As he picked at the bird he was eating, his mind was distantly on other thoughts. Such as when he awoke, what was he going to explore then? The tom was never constantly in Skyclan. He was a full member of it, having it been his home since apprenticehood. He would do anything for Skyclan without a second thought. He would be the first to attack if they were in danger. He would lay his life on the line for Grousestar and Auroraflame without a second thought. That was because they were his authorities. And, he respected them. As a clan, it was the warriors job to protect their leader and deputy. In turn, their leader and deputy protected them.

It worked hand in hand pretty well. The clan mates were satisfied, as he were. The shelter was grand. The food was delicious. The territory was protected. The only thing he didn't like was the lousy beings beyond the border--Dusk syndicate.

The tom remembered venturing out there a few times before. Saw some faces he never wanted to see again. Yet, he felt that they were picking at a fight. Something that everyone knew he wouldn’t turn down. Fighting was his specialty. After all, if it weren’t would he not have build up the muscles he dearly worked hard on? Even as he leaned down, he felt the tension in his muscles tighten up. He flexed his claws a bit, hoping to calm them down. He knew he wasn’t going to be working out tomorrow--or whatever danger he was going to put himself. He felt that he got enough exercise with those rocks. He most likely smelled like dust and rocks. Perhaps, he should start grooming himself as well.

As the tom finished most of his food, his ears pricked at the sound of a cheerful voice. A voice he knew all too well. A voice everyone knew all too well. Slowly, the silver tabby lifted his head, staring right into the blue orbs of the deputy. At first, he was speechless. What was she doing here? Did he do something wrong? Was he in trouble? He couldn’t had been. Her voice was too cheerful for her to be serious with him. Besides, she was carrying a rabbit in her maw. The tom shifted his weight, and he sat up, correcting his posture. ‘’Hi.’’ His mews friendly with a smile on his face.

He was still trying to figure out what the ebony deputy wanted. When he noticed that he was just staring at her with a tilt of his head, he widened his eyes and quickly apologized. ‘’Sorry! I--um...you can sit here.’’ He answered as politely as possible. He was about finished with his meal anyhow, and he shifted over so that the deputy could feel comfortable where she was at. The tom was certainly surprised that she wanted to sit by him. There were so many friends that she had that were around, so why didn’t she want to sit by them?

It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy her company. He never really had her attention nor her company, so it was natural for him to feel a type of panic coming through to him. To settle himself down, he began grooming himself, hoping to calm the scent of rocks and dirt. Naturally he smelled of pinewood and a hint of wild berries--another favorite of his. The silver tabby took rasp licks at his chest fur, then his paws. He curled his tail around him, and began taking licks at his shoulders. From the corner of his eyes, he watched Auroraflame.

It was weird. Peculiar to him that he was being rude to the deputy. Not saying a word to her? How could be so dense minded? Of course, he answered her, but that was it. What else was he suppose to do? Make small conversation? One thing that the tom did not like was making small conversation. Small conversation led to a short meet--she would eventually leave him, and think on otherwise as to why she approached him at al.

Umbraice cleared his throat, stopping himself from his grooming process. He gave a gentle nod towards Auroraflame, ‘’So how is everything, miss Auroraflame? I know you’ve been busy, but wow! You went barreling at that food pile, haven’t you?’’ He purred, chuckling. The best thing to avoid small talk was to start out a conversation on light weighted humor. Hopefully, everything would be smooth between them to talk and laugh. Umbraice was surprised that he landed the company of the deputy--who was next? The leader?! The tom chuckled to himself, and more at Auroraflame. He saw her running towards the fresh kill pile--everyone had. She was almost like a kit at nature, running around. He didn’t blame her. He felt that she was overwhelmed with duties, and he respected her for handling the clan like she did. She was a great cat, indeed.

As the rabbit continued to make her mouth water, Auroraflame quickly decided to take a break for the rest of the day. Perhaps later she would go into the territory and stretch her paws. Duties had been keeping her couped up in camp and the deputy longed to rush into the territory and start jumping off trees, running along mountain sides, diving into cold pools of water. Most cats disliked water, but Auroraflame seemed to enjoy eat. She didn't quite love it, but it could be rather refreshing after a whole day of work. When you got Auroraflame out of camp, her responsible side went away and she was all for fun. She loved to live her life like she only had one last day to live. She wanted to spend her time well.

Being in the territory always gave her comfort. There were so many things she liked to do. Auroraflame was careful of what she did though. As nice as the territory was, there were still many dangers there were to face. When the ebony she-cat had only been a young kit, she had decided to venture out for a short while and had just so happened to come across a fox. She was close enough to camp that the fox had smelt enough cat scents to not venture further, but she had been scarred ever since. The deputy hadn't ever told anyone of this. Who knew that a cat who had grown up to be deputy, had been so stupid and reckless as a kit? That fox had certainly taught her a bit of obedience.

The deputy watched curiously as Umbraice picked as his food. Was that how cats ate nowadays? If they did, then she certainly hadn't been aware of such a thing. Although, she was rather doubtful of such a thing. Having seen others eating earlier, they hadn't been picking at their food. Having already said her greetings, the ebony feline gave a shallow dip of her head as he responded. But anyway, it was quite hard for Auroraflame to say anything, due to the fact that she had a rabbit in her maw. The only language that the she-cat was capable of speaking right now, was gibberish.

As the silver tabby in front of her stared at her with a tilt of his head, the deputy felt herself doing the same. It was a habit of Auroraflame's. If someone was staring at her, she would stare back at them until they looked away. Although this particular tom looked plain confused as he stared at her. As he finally spoke, Auroraflame sighed inwardly, glad that she wasn't going to have to stand there all day. The deputy placed the rabbit down gently before moving. The ebony feline lay down, shifting every now and again until she was comfortable.

There seemed to be an awkward silence between them as Umbraice turned his attention to his fur. To be honest, Auroraflame couldn't say she really cared. She just wanted to eat, not minding what the tom wanted to do. Switching her gaze to the rabbit, she started to eat. As hungry as she was, the deputy still ate neatly, taking medium sized bites out of the plump creature. She took notice of the tom who was staring at her out the corner of his eye, focusing way too intently on the rabbit in front of her. It was like she was staring into it's soul.

As Auroraflame ate, something broke through her senses. She could smell something. It seemed like.....rocks? And dust? Was that it? Yes, it probably was. Out the corner of her eye, she noticed that the longer Umbraice groomed himself, the fainter the scent became. She felt a flood of curiosity crash into her. What had he been doing before? Whatever it was, she was sure it had been great fun.

The longer he groomed, the more another scent came through. Pinewood and wild berries. That's what it smelt like. The deputy stiffened for a short moment as she realised just how big of a creep she was. Who smelt others while they were cleaning themselves? As Umbraice stopped grooming and focused his attention on her, she felt herself quickly looking back at the rabbit, continuing to take neat bites out of it. Auroraflame took away the look of curiosity and quickly replaced it with one of cheerfulness. Looking up, a small chuckle escaped the barrier of her jaws and she quickly opened her mouth to let the words tumble out. "Well, after dealing with a mountain of work, you can't ignore food when it calls to you," Auroraflame responded, amusement glimmering in her icy blue hues. It didn't seem to bother her that nearly everyone had seen her run to the kill pile like a maniac.

[ameko]

Originally Posted by Lonestar23

Acornflash seemed like such a lovely cat. Greystep felt bad, making him deal with the tom who wasn't exactly desirable company... the tom wasn't exactly what might be called a cat who would fit in places. He definitely didn't feel like he belonged here most of the time. And sure, he had the sweet feline who was like his daughter, Splotchfeather... he had Owlwing... and maybe someday he would have Acornflash as a friend as well. He wasn't quite sure about it. The tom didn't really know whether or not the tom would want to be around him for a long, long time. He shifted his weight again, looking at the younger cat before him almost nervously. To be honest, embarassment was one of the things that was most strong in Greystep's life. He was constantly being embarassed, whether it was by himself or someone else's actions. Sometimes he would watch things going on in the clearing and cringe at the uncomfortableness of them. How was it that there were so many things going wrong with the Clan at this time?
　
Or, honestly...Clans. As he had found out not too long ago. There were other Clans...there were cats living there in the same lifestyle as SkyClan, with a leader and deputy and medicine cat... how was that possible? He couldn't quite wrap his mind around it no matter how hard he tried. What did Acornflash think of it? There being other Clans? He already knew that the other tom didn't like the Dusk Syndicate. And frankly? Greystep didn't blame him at all. Those cats were the scariest he had ever had the misfortune to encounter, and he hoped to never see them again. If he were to live for another forty moons and never see a Dusk Syndicate cat, he would be absolutely thrilled. How big was the age difference between the two toms? Greystep guessed it wasn't too bad, not more then ten moons or so-- that wasn't horrible. He and Splotchfeather were twenty moons apart, and perhaps if he were younger, things would be different. But as it was, she was more like a daughter to him then anything else.
　
The daughter he had never had-- nor would get to have. Maybe she and Acornflash would meet someday, they seemed like the two of them would be perfectly good friends. The tom's ears picked up as he heard the younger one's more confident sounding voice again. To be honest, he wasn't sure whether he believed the words coming from the chestnut cat's maw or not. Everyone's weird in their own way? What does that mean? He thought, cocking his head to the side. At least he was being a decent cat still. Greystep was half terrified that, given a chance, he would end up with a broken heart...not in the sense that he was in love with Acornflash, but more in the sense that he would run off and leave, making Greystep feel alone once more. Even Splotchfeather had other things to do so he couldn't be around her all the time. Nor could he be around Owlwing a lot of the time either, considering she was busy as well. "W-what if t-th-they do?" He asked in a low voice, almost a whisper when he heard Acornflash's question.
　
Maybe they did know what they were talking about. Maybe he really was just a weird cat, a cat who didn't know what he was doing. The comfort that he felt around the tom was growing, not only because he was being so incredibly friendly but because his nervousness faded over time anyways. Something that he was both grateful for and cursed at the same time. "I mean...wh-what if they're r-ru-right? Wh-what if I-I-I re-real-really am j-just w-wuh-weird, an-and a n-nu-nobody..." Greystep's voice trailed off. He'd been hearing those words for most of his life. But saying them out loud? That really hurt. A nobody. He was a nobody, really. Most of the cats in the Clan were. They were just loyal warriors, doing their job. Nobody important. They were all nobodies, and Greystep? Well, he was just one of them. The most invisible nobody of all. Acornflash's story made Greystep's ears pick up and he listened intently. That would be really scary. Had the tom before him really been through that?
　

"W-wu-wow. That's... that m-muh-must have b-bu-been t-terrifying. G-glad you're in S-Sku-SkyClan n-nu-now."

He spoke. He had stopped repeating his sentences, wondering if Acornflash could still understand what he was saying. It seemed to make sense! Didn't it? He was able to understand it perfectly, and Owlwing had been able to, but she was special. Splotchfeather just hadn't cared. And Acornflash? Well, Greystep was still trying to figure that much out.

[ i'm trying my best to respond with equal paragraphs ;; ]

Greystep's stammer was... out of the ordinary, Acornflash had to admit. He didn't think that he'd met anybody in SkyClan—or not in SkyClan, he supposed—that had a speech impediment as serious as the older warrior's. Well, he didn't talk to every single cat, anyway. He'd only just met this cat! There had to be others like him. Right? Acornflash didn't have a definite answer. Greystep was so adamant in believing that he was totally abnormal and didn't belong in SkyClan, so maybe he actually was..? No. That would be silly, he thought. Still, he couldn't shake that feeling. That dirty, disgusting feeling. Acornflash felt that he was openly dissing Greystep by silently agreeing with the other warrior's acrimony against himself.

"They don't," he persisted, eyes hardening. Momentary frustration was visible in his words; he dug his claws into the dirt and straightened his back, forcing his anger down. He did seem to get annoyed very easily—something he'd need to keep in check with this nervous warrior. Acornflash was a very decisive tom, and he often got bothered by how self-doubting some cats were. But to let that show now would likely make Greystep more uncomfortable, and he did not want that to happen. From the sound of the other tom's voice, he seemed to be growing more at ease around Acornflash, so to do something like that would draw all of that progress back. Or so he thought. He still wasn't completely sure. "They don't know what they're talking about," he reiterated.

"You're not a nobody," Acornflash said, picking up right where Greystep had trailed off. How could someone be a nobody? That didn't make any sort of sense to him. To be a nobody would be to not exist at all, which wasn't possible! If it wasn't obvious, Acornflash tended to be very literate; many metaphors fly right over his furry head. "If you were a nobody, no cat at all would know who you are! And I know who you are, so that makes you definitely not a nobody," he meowed. Sure, his reasoning seemed to be a little off and unsteady, but Acornflash would use anything to justify what he thought was correct. Among many, that was one of his other flaws.

At Greystep's earlier question, Acornflash had launched himself into talk about his past right away. He never liked memories of that to surface. The young tom paused to close his eyes after speaking, shoving his intruding thoughts to the back of his mind. Acornflash couldn't deal with his past, not now. He was just beginning to ease Greystep into talking with less amounts of stammers every time. He didn't want to go back to the drawing board and have Greystep shut himself away. He wanted to get to know this tom, he wanted to become his friend, but he couldn't do that if he made him nervous. Ever since the grey tom had stopped repeating his sentences, it had gotten significantly harder to understand him. He tried to ignore it though and just go with what he thought he said. "Yeah, I'm pretty glad I'm in SkyClan now, too," he sighed, opening his eyes and smiling at Greystep. It was a reassuring one, just to tell him that he was okay and that talking about that hadn't affected him in any way. Easing his nerves would in turn ease Acornflash's. Well, that's what he hoped, anyway. "You should be glad that you're in SkyClan! I'm sure you have cats that you talk to, right? Like how I have Nightflash and Splotchfeather," he meowed, totally oblivious to the fact that Greystep was close to Splotchfeather as well. A moment passed before Acornflash realized that he might... not have anyone. "A-and even if you don't, you have me now!"

[Brilliance]

Originally Posted by Empress Of Evil

As the rabbit continued to make her mouth water, Auroraflame quickly decided to take a break for the rest of the day. Perhaps later she would go into the territory and stretch her paws. Duties had been keeping her couped up in camp and the deputy longed to rush into the territory and start jumping off trees, running along mountain sides, diving into cold pools of water. Most cats disliked water, but Auroraflame seemed to enjoy eat. She didn't quite love it, but it could be rather refreshing after a whole day of work. When you got Auroraflame out of camp, her responsible side went away and she was all for fun. She loved to live her life like she only had one last day to live. She wanted to spend her time well.

Being in the territory always gave her comfort. There were so many things she liked to do. Auroraflame was careful of what she did though. As nice as the territory was, there were still many dangers there were to face. When the ebony she-cat had only been a young kit, she had decided to venture out for a short while and had just so happened to come across a fox. She was close enough to camp that the fox had smelt enough cat scents to not venture further, but she had been scarred ever since. The deputy hadn't ever told anyone of this. Who knew that a cat who had grown up to be deputy, had been so stupid and reckless as a kit? That fox had certainly taught her a bit of obedience.

The deputy watched curiously as Umbraice picked as his food. Was that how cats ate nowadays? If they did, then she certainly hadn't been aware of such a thing. Although, she was rather doubtful of such a thing. Having seen others eating earlier, they hadn't been picking at their food. Having already said her greetings, the ebony feline gave a shallow dip of her head as he responded. But anyway, it was quite hard for Auroraflame to say anything, due to the fact that she had a rabbit in her maw. The only language that the she-cat was capable of speaking right now, was gibberish.

As the silver tabby in front of her stared at her with a tilt of his head, the deputy felt herself doing the same. It was a habit of Auroraflame's. If someone was staring at her, she would stare back at them until they looked away. Although this particular tom looked plain confused as he stared at her. As he finally spoke, Auroraflame sighed inwardly, glad that she wasn't going to have to stand there all day. The deputy placed the rabbit down gently before moving. The ebony feline lay down, shifting every now and again until she was comfortable.

There seemed to be an awkward silence between them as Umbraice turned his attention to his fur. To be honest, Auroraflame couldn't say she really cared. She just wanted to eat, not minding what the tom wanted to do. Switching her gaze to the rabbit, she started to eat. As hungry as she was, the deputy still ate neatly, taking medium sized bites out of the plump creature. She took notice of the tom who was staring at her out the corner of his eye, focusing way too intently on the rabbit in front of her. It was like she was staring into it's soul.

As Auroraflame ate, something broke through her senses. She could smell something. It seemed like.....rocks? And dust? Was that it? Yes, it probably was. Out the corner of her eye, she noticed that the longer Umbraice groomed himself, the fainter the scent became. She felt a flood of curiosity crash into her. What had he been doing before? Whatever it was, she was sure it had been great fun.

The longer he groomed, the more another scent came through. Pinewood and wild berries. That's what it smelt like. The deputy stiffened for a short moment as she realised just how big of a creep she was. Who smelt others while they were cleaning themselves? As Umbraice stopped grooming and focused his attention on her, she felt herself quickly looking back at the rabbit, continuing to take neat bites out of it. Auroraflame took away the look of curiosity and quickly replaced it with one of cheerfulness. Looking up, a small chuckle escaped the barrier of her jaws and she quickly opened her mouth to let the words tumble out. "Well, after dealing with a mountain of work, you can't ignore food when it calls to you," Auroraflame responded, amusement glimmering in her icy blue hues. It didn't seem to bother her that nearly everyone had seen her run to the kill pile like a maniac.

‘’Oh, yeah?’’ The silver tabby smirked, tilting his head slightly at the ebony deputy. One thing he knew was that he had to agree with her. After a long day, he would want to do the same. Barreling at the food pile, not caring of the prying eyes around him. He had done that a couple times before. When he was really hungry, he seemed to jump around other cats that were in his way of food. This tom loved food. He did not play about food. So, he understood where Auroraflame was coming from. The funny part was how she mentioned mountains. A chuckle escaped his throat. ‘’Mountain of work, huh? I wouldn’t expect anything else from you.’’ Just to think to think a few moments ago he had been running on the side of a large mountain. Eventually, he got tired and challenged himself to climb. Only, it almost caused a rock fall, and he had to turn back before he was plummeted to death.

It was a shame that he found death...interesting, in a manner. Though he did not want to die as quick. He faintly recalled how his mother would scold him for doing this or that--anything being dangerous. He always had been a curious soul, an adventure in his heart, and exploration on his mind. ‘’You look like you could use a break-’’ that sounded a bit harsh. And rude. And idiotic. At least to him. It was as if he was insulting her looks. The tom’s eyes widened, and his fur bristled. He hissed under his breath at himself, before reframing his posture. ‘’Not that you look bad at all! You look beautiful. You look stunning. It don’t look like you have done a day of work in your life. And, you seem to have done so much. I applaud you.’’ Now, he was rambling. About what exactly? The tom looked down uncomfortably at his paws before he looked ahead at the crowd of cats in front of them. He let out a hollow laugh, ‘’This would be the part where you could pound me into oblivion.’’ He turned back to her, and watched as she ate the rabbit. Perhaps, she didn’t want to be bothered, but when would it be another time that he would make a friend within his own clan? The tom remembered most of his friends. They were too busy. They had mates, they had kits, they had responsibilities, and even though he enjoyed being around kits, he didn’t find himself settling down anytime soon. So, he’s been restless...reckless, and hoping to keep his mind off the lonely wanderings.

‘’Anyone who would ignore food should be ashamed of themselves.’’ The tom snorted. He had to agree, food was important to him. He treasured food because without it, he wouldn’t live. Just like plants needed water and sunlight, he needed food. And, the thought occurred to him if he should get somewhere. A large tom as himself would not be full just from picking at a small bird. He only did it to remain humble for his clan. If they seen him being greedy, he would receive harsh stares, and that was something the tom wished to stay away from. ‘’I mean, food is nutrition. It helps get vitamins and keep you feel and make you strong and healthy--even though I would love to have another piece--I shouldn’t do that. I just feel like all my energy is depleted. I feel like I ran for ten moons straight.’’ Again, he was rambling, and he immediately stopped himself. ‘’Sorry...about talking so much.’’

Umbraice enjoyed a good conversation. One that was lively, and as long as he kept it up, perhaps Auroraflame would like to continue to talk to him. He felt that he wanted to be good friends with the ebony feline. He recalled how others would gush about how wonderful she was and cheerful and just...lit up everyone’s world. The silver tabby laid on the grass and rolled onto his back, so that he was facing the sky. He clawed a the air, a quietness taking over him. The tom noticed that his claws were unnaturally sharp, and he sliced at the air with them. He made no sudden sound before he retracted his claws and allowed his paws to dangle in the air.

Umbraice glanced back at the deputy, his ears flicking. He silently stared at her as if he was studying her. He was utterly confused about why she approached him. Yet, she was known as a friendly face around the clan. He had to remember that. It was her job to make sure everyone was in order, to make sure everything was in order. Distantly, he stared into her blue orbs. Admiring the color. Of course, they had the same eye color--though her appeared to be a darker shade than his. And, by his standards, hers were much prettier. At first glance to him, Auroraflame did not seem like the type to be a deputy--she was nice, cheerful, maybe...fun-loving. This was all that came to him from the eye. He didn’t know her personally, and he doubted she knew him personally.

Did she even know his name?

Umbraice sighed and turned away. Perhaps it didn’t matter. He was another face in the clan that disappeared every now and then, and she was the second representative of Skyclan, trailing being Grousestar. And, soon she would be leader once Grousestar steps down. She would be...Aurorastar. Umbraice cleared his mind. He had to focus on the present, and so far, the present was too quiet for him, so he rolled back onto his stomach, and lightly swayed his tail, looking back up at her with a friendly smile. ‘’This is a complete random topic, but I want to know how’s your day been other than work? You look like you had an interesting day.’’ He says, though his voice was laced with sarcasm. A day of work doesn’t seem interesting, but he figured that she had some type of fun to start out her day. Right?

[~Masked~]

Originally Posted by turtle

The brown american curl slipped into the camp carrying a limp bird in his jaw as he made way towards the freshkill pile. His ears flickered slightly as the gentle breeze dances around them. His pale green eyes scanned the surrounding area in search of something to do. His gaze jumped from cat to cat that littered the area seeing none that really interested him. That was until his gaze landed onto the gray warrior that hid away in the shadows of the tree. Nodding to himself he turned and completed what little step away from the pile and released the limp creature on top of the rest. Clearing his throat slightly he twirled around and slowly crept forward before he stopped right in front of the warrior a small smile rested against his face. Dipping his head in greetings he glanced up at him "Why hello there!" His voice was soft and gentle no out of tune note were present as his gaze continue to study the warrior.

The gray tom whipped his head around looking up a little his eyes widened in surprise at the american curl. He felt anxiety wash over him but tried his best sound confident "O-Oh Hello!" to be exact that had sounded better in his head but still he probably had sounded like a loser, GreyTail looked back down at the prey that he had pulled out of the prey pile it was quite small but that was fine since he had not been very hungry just decided he might as well eat something, the warrior gazed at Turtlefern studying his features he hadn't really seen this brown tom around which did give him some relief that meant that he could get to know this cat from the start and not based of rumors and gossip, wind blew bast the two sending a couple of leafs flying into the air and making his fur ruffle though he didn't pay much attention and looked at Turtlefern waiting for a response.

[Empress Of Evil]

Originally Posted by Noire

‘’Oh, yeah?’’ The silver tabby smirked, tilting his head slightly at the ebony deputy. One thing he knew was that he had to agree with her. After a long day, he would want to do the same. Barreling at the food pile, not caring of the prying eyes around him. He had done that a couple times before. When he was really hungry, he seemed to jump around other cats that were in his way of food. This tom loved food. He did not play about food. So, he understood where Auroraflame was coming from. The funny part was how she mentioned mountains. A chuckle escaped his throat. ‘’Mountain of work, huh? I wouldn’t expect anything else from you.’’ Just to think to think a few moments ago he had been running on the side of a large mountain. Eventually, he got tired and challenged himself to climb. Only, it almost caused a rock fall, and he had to turn back before he was plummeted to death.

It was a shame that he found death...interesting, in a manner. Though he did not want to die as quick. He faintly recalled how his mother would scold him for doing this or that--anything being dangerous. He always had been a curious soul, an adventure in his heart, and exploration on his mind. ‘’You look like you could use a break-’’ that sounded a bit harsh. And rude. And idiotic. At least to him. It was as if he was insulting her looks. The tom’s eyes widened, and his fur bristled. He hissed under his breath at himself, before reframing his posture. ‘’Not that you look bad at all! You look beautiful. You look stunning. It don’t look like you have done a day of work in your life. And, you seem to have done so much. I applaud you.’’ Now, he was rambling. About what exactly? The tom looked down uncomfortably at his paws before he looked ahead at the crowd of cats in front of them. He let out a hollow laugh, ‘’This would be the part where you could pound me into oblivion.’’ He turned back to her, and watched as she ate the rabbit. Perhaps, she didn’t want to be bothered, but when would it be another time that he would make a friend within his own clan? The tom remembered most of his friends. They were too busy. They had mates, they had kits, they had responsibilities, and even though he enjoyed being around kits, he didn’t find himself settling down anytime soon. So, he’s been restless...reckless, and hoping to keep his mind off the lonely wanderings.

‘’Anyone who would ignore food should be ashamed of themselves.’’ The tom snorted. He had to agree, food was important to him. He treasured food because without it, he wouldn’t live. Just like plants needed water and sunlight, he needed food. And, the thought occurred to him if he should get somewhere. A large tom as himself would not be full just from picking at a small bird. He only did it to remain humble for his clan. If they seen him being greedy, he would receive harsh stares, and that was something the tom wished to stay away from. ‘’I mean, food is nutrition. It helps get vitamins and keep you feel and make you strong and healthy--even though I would love to have another piece--I shouldn’t do that. I just feel like all my energy is depleted. I feel like I ran for ten moons straight.’’ Again, he was rambling, and he immediately stopped himself. ‘’Sorry...about talking so much.’’

Umbraice enjoyed a good conversation. One that was lively, and as long as he kept it up, perhaps Auroraflame would like to continue to talk to him. He felt that he wanted to be good friends with the ebony feline. He recalled how others would gush about how wonderful she was and cheerful and just...lit up everyone’s world. The silver tabby laid on the grass and rolled onto his back, so that he was facing the sky. He clawed a the air, a quietness taking over him. The tom noticed that his claws were unnaturally sharp, and he sliced at the air with them. He made no sudden sound before he retracted his claws and allowed his paws to dangle in the air.

Umbraice glanced back at the deputy, his ears flicking. He silently stared at her as if he was studying her. He was utterly confused about why she approached him. Yet, she was known as a friendly face around the clan. He had to remember that. It was her job to make sure everyone was in order, to make sure everything was in order. Distantly, he stared into her blue orbs. Admiring the color. Of course, they had the same eye color--though her appeared to be a darker shade than his. And, by his standards, hers were much prettier. At first glance to him, Auroraflame did not seem like the type to be a deputy--she was nice, cheerful, maybe...fun-loving. This was all that came to him from the eye. He didn’t know her personally, and he doubted she knew him personally.

Did she even know his name?

Umbraice sighed and turned away. Perhaps it didn’t matter. He was another face in the clan that disappeared every now and then, and she was the second representative of Skyclan, trailing being Grousestar. And, soon she would be leader once Grousestar steps down. She would be...Aurorastar. Umbraice cleared his mind. He had to focus on the present, and so far, the present was too quiet for him, so he rolled back onto his stomach, and lightly swayed his tail, looking back up at her with a friendly smile. ‘’This is a complete random topic, but I want to know how’s your day been other than work? You look like you had an interesting day.’’ He says, though his voice was laced with sarcasm. A day of work doesn’t seem interesting, but he figured that she had some type of fun to start out her day. Right?

The deputy had nearly finished her piece of prey, creating craters in the rabbit with each bite she took. When Auroraflame ate, she didn't leave a single part untouched. Except for the entrails that is. The ebony she-cat didn't like wasting anything. What was the point of having something, and then not using half of it? It was only right to make good use of what StarClan had so kindly given to them. Each time she managed to catch a piece of prey, Auroraflame would silently thank StarClan. No matter what season, it was always going to be hard, trying to catch another animal. Even if they appeared to have no brains, that didn't make them complete idiots. If they had already lived to the point of an adult, then surely they would no how to survive even longer. Life was a survival game. And the food chain was just one big obstacle. Auroraflame stopped for a short moment to let out a shallow chuckle. "Real mountains are much more fun to be on," the she-cat remarked.

About a minute later, the deputy had finished tearing the meat off of milky coloured animal, a pile of bones and entrails remaining. She would have to dispose of them later, she couldn't leave a good conversation so suddenly, that would just be rude. Auroraflame was about to respond to the tom's sentence, however the moment she parted her jaws to speak, he appeared to be having a....seizure? Well that's what it looked like to Auroraflame anyway. She was rather doubtful of it because he appeared fine afterwards. Whilst Umbraice had found the statement rather rude, the ebony she-cat hadn't noticed anything wrong with the statement. Wasn't that just a sentence that was said to a hardworking clanmate every now and again? Auroraflame raised an eye as he started rambling and complimenting her. She stared at him, perplexed at his words. Well that had certainly come unexpected. There was nothing wrong with his words, but she certainly hadn't been expecting him to start spilling out words like that. Was he okay? The deputy was about to ask when she suddenly decided against it. It might sound rather rude if she were to ask. "Um....thanks?" Auroraflame started , amusement glimmering in her icy orbs. She couldn't help but find him rather amusing. "Well no not really. This is the part where I say that you're ugly," the deputy teased, her confusion gone, replaced with a joking manner. Despite her kind personality, Auroraflame did quite enjoy insulting others. Of course, she never meant any of it, it was simply part of her humorous nature.

The deputy laughed softly. She had no disagreements there. Food was a very important part of her life. If she had to marry it, she would do so without a complaint. "Who doesn't love food? It's so delicious. And mouth watering. And delicious. Did I already mention that it's delicious?" Auroraflame said excitedly. Now it was her turn to ramble. The ebony feline looked down for a moment, quickly replaying what she had just said in her head. Whoops, she thought as she realised she had said the word 'delicious' three times in one sentence. "Food is life," Auroraflame agreed, nodding her head as she spoke. "I'd do anything to run for ten moons right now," the deputy snorted. She half meant it. She didn't exactly want to run for ten moons straight, but she did indeed want to run and stretch her paws. She wanted to get away from all her work. She wanted to be free.

"Oh no it's fine. When I get the chance, I talk too much myself," Auroraflame remarked, chuckling at the end of her statement. It was quite true. Most found it hard to make her keep her mouth shut the moment she started to talk. The she-cat had been born a talkative one. She was always asking questions yet at the same time, she was rather shy when it came to meeting new cats. Becoming deputy had certainly boosted her confidence and she had gained a more thorough ability to walk up to someone and start talking to them.

Auroraflame watched curiously as Umbraice swiped his paws through the air. She noticed how they were abnormally sharp. Quite like hers. Looking down, she compared her own claws to his. They could be quite a problem when she wasn't careful as to where she put them. Having unusually sharp claws could certainly be an advantage in a battle, but not so much when it came to walking around.

The silence between them this time wasn't so awkward. It was a comfortable silence. Auroraflame sighed inwardly. She wanted to just run into the territory and see if she could go jumping on some rocks. She longed to breath in the fresh air of the territory. Of course the air in the camp was still fresh, however the territory didn't have as many cat scents in it. It was peaceful and calming. Perhaps it was rather strange for one to find the shrieks of birds comforting, but it was something that reminded her of the old territory. Each morning the deputy would wake up because a flock of birds weren't being considerate of others. At least it worked. She didn't have much trouble waking up. She might've had late nights, but she still managed to wake up early. With much reluctance that is.

Looking back at the silver tabby that lay on his back, Auroraflame felt yet another wave of curiosity washing over her ebony fur. It was interesting how a cat she didn't know very well, could be so amusing. She didn't mean that in the kind of way where she laughed at him because he looked stupid or something. He just seemed to have the sense of humour that she had. She could relate to him. She was quickly brought out of her thoughts as the tom started to speak again. "Oh yes, it's been an absolutely wonderful day being confined in camp," Auroraflame replied with a sarcastic tone of her own. "It's been great fun, running around and fixing all the problems of the clan," she continued. The deputy loved sarcasm. She knew that she wouldn't be able to live without it. "Noit'sbeenhorribleandallIwanttodoisgetoutofherean dstartclimbingsomething," Auroraflame mumbled so fast that her words sounded like gibberish.

[Brilliance]

Originally Posted by Empress Of Evil

The deputy had nearly finished her piece of prey, creating craters in the rabbit with each bite she took. When Auroraflame ate, she didn't leave a single part untouched. Except for the entrails that is. The ebony she-cat didn't like wasting anything. What was the point of having something, and then not using half of it? It was only right to make good use of what StarClan had so kindly given to them. Each time she managed to catch a piece of prey, Auroraflame would silently thank StarClan. No matter what season, it was always going to be hard, trying to catch another animal. Even if they appeared to have no brains, that didn't make them complete idiots. If they had already lived to the point of an adult, then surely they would no how to survive even longer. Life was a survival game. And the food chain was just one big obstacle. Auroraflame stopped for a short moment to let out a shallow chuckle. "Real mountains are much more fun to be on," the she-cat remarked.

About a minute later, the deputy had finished tearing the meat off of milky coloured animal, a pile of bones and entrails remaining. She would have to dispose of them later, she couldn't leave a good conversation so suddenly, that would just be rude. Auroraflame was about to respond to the tom's sentence, however the moment she parted her jaws to speak, he appeared to be having a....seizure? Well that's what it looked like to Auroraflame anyway. She was rather doubtful of it because he appeared fine afterwards. Whilst Umbraice had found the statement rather rude, the ebony she-cat hadn't noticed anything wrong with the statement. Wasn't that just a sentence that was said to a hardworking clanmate every now and again? Auroraflame raised an eye as he started rambling and complimenting her. She stared at him, perplexed at his words. Well that had certainly come unexpected. There was nothing wrong with his words, but she certainly hadn't been expecting him to start spilling out words like that. Was he okay? The deputy was about to ask when she suddenly decided against it. It might sound rather rude if she were to ask. "Um....thanks?" Auroraflame started , amusement glimmering in her icy orbs. She couldn't help but find him rather amusing. "Well no not really. This is the part where I say that you're ugly," the deputy teased, her confusion gone, replaced with a joking manner. Despite her kind personality, Auroraflame did quite enjoy insulting others. Of course, she never meant any of it, it was simply part of her humorous nature.

The deputy laughed softly. She had no disagreements there. Food was a very important part of her life. If she had to marry it, she would do so without a complaint. "Who doesn't love food? It's so delicious. And mouth watering. And delicious. Did I already mention that it's delicious?" Auroraflame said excitedly. Now it was her turn to ramble. The ebony feline looked down for a moment, quickly replaying what she had just said in her head. Whoops, she thought as she realised she had said the word 'delicious' three times in one sentence. "Food is life," Auroraflame agreed, nodding her head as she spoke. "I'd do anything to run for ten moons right now," the deputy snorted. She half meant it. She didn't exactly want to run for ten moons straight, but she did indeed want to run and stretch her paws. She wanted to get away from all her work. She wanted to be free.

"Oh no it's fine. When I get the chance, I talk too much myself," Auroraflame remarked, chuckling at the end of her statement. It was quite true. Most found it hard to make her keep her mouth shut the moment she started to talk. The she-cat had been born a talkative one. She was always asking questions yet at the same time, she was rather shy when it came to meeting new cats. Becoming deputy had certainly boosted her confidence and she had gained a more thorough ability to walk up to someone and start talking to them.

Auroraflame watched curiously as Umbraice swiped his paws through the air. She noticed how they were abnormally sharp. Quite like hers. Looking down, she compared her own claws to his. They could be quite a problem when she wasn't careful as to where she put them. Having unusually sharp claws could certainly be an advantage in a battle, but not so much when it came to walking around.

The silence between them this time wasn't so awkward. It was a comfortable silence. Auroraflame sighed inwardly. She wanted to just run into the territory and see if she could go jumping on some rocks. She longed to breath in the fresh air of the territory. Of course the air in the camp was still fresh, however the territory didn't have as many cat scents in it. It was peaceful and calming. Perhaps it was rather strange for one to find the shrieks of birds comforting, but it was something that reminded her of the old territory. Each morning the deputy would wake up because a flock of birds weren't being considerate of others. At least it worked. She didn't have much trouble waking up. She might've had late nights, but she still managed to wake up early. With much reluctance that is.

Looking back at the silver tabby that lay on his back, Auroraflame felt yet another wave of curiosity washing over her ebony fur. It was interesting how a cat she didn't know very well, could be so amusing. She didn't mean that in the kind of way where she laughed at him because he looked stupid or something. He just seemed to have the sense of humour that she had. She could relate to him. She was quickly brought out of her thoughts as the tom started to speak again. "Oh yes, it's been an absolutely wonderful day being confined in camp," Auroraflame replied with a sarcastic tone of her own. "It's been great fun, running around and fixing all the problems of the clan," she continued. The deputy loved sarcasm. She knew that she wouldn't be able to live without it. "Noit'sbeenhorribleandallIwanttodoisgetoutofherean dstartclimbingsomething," Auroraflame mumbled so fast that her words sounded like gibberish.

The silver tabby was at first taken aback. Did she really just insult him like that? He squinted his eyes to stare at her, but his mind was blank. What was he suppose to reply with when it came to that? Umbraice didn’t know, but he felt some of his self-esteem depleting. He pinned his ears back for a second, letting out a nervous laugh. ‘’Right.’’ He clears his throat. If he didn’t have anything to say about it, might as well ignore it. He didn’t like to think that he was ugly. He knew he wasn’t the most handsome around, but he also wasn’t bad looking. The silver tabby was unaware of Auroraflame’s joking matter, not having yet to be exposed to it fully, so instead he sat there uncomfortable, having his eyes fleet around anywhere that might be intriguing to view.

At her next words, he brought his face around, smiling brightly at her. He chuckled at her words, believing them. ‘’Food is indeed delicious. Like, really delicious. Like, it’s a shame that it’s so delicious, and we do little to appreciate it.’’ Food was a delicacy. That much, Umbraice knew. Without food, they would starve. When they starved, they would die. Wipeout in existence. Be extinct. It was the reason why food was important in his nature. Besides that, he needed it to replenish his health after finding something drastic to do. The male snorted, at hearing her next words, and jokingly he added, ‘’Yeah, you look like you need the exercise.’’ Perhaps, calling the deputy fat was mean, but it only a comical joke. He felt that she wouldn’t take any harm to it, especially since she called him ugly earlier. The feline laughed at the thought. As he said this, he gets up and stretched his limbs, bending down and extending his paws, and coming back up to crack a few bones in his neck. A chill ran down his spine from the pleasure. ‘’Food is life for you, and exercise is life for me. I workout...a lot. It’s a shame really.’’ The tom shakes his head before he moved his paws around to flex his muscles. His muscles tightened, and he felt the hardness of them. ‘’But, no working out for me tomorrow. I don’t want to pull anything and risk having to go see Ebonypaw because I wasn’t careful.’’ Not like that would be new with him. He put his paw down, and covers his tail around himself as he pays back attention to Auroraflame.

‘’Ah, of course, I’ve been exposed to that.’’ The tom replied to her comment. He hadn’t expected anything else from Auroraflame. She seemed like the cheerful peppy feline that loved the attention. That loved to talk. This was only because he hadn’t known her on a friendly level. Yet, he was still shaken that she even started talking to him, let alone wanting to sit by him. Though he was enjoying the conversation with the deputy and figured why she had so many friends that she did. She was an absolute joy to be around. He couldn’t help but laugh at her as she said this. He tried to reframe himself from talking too much, wanting to give the other cat a chance to speak. Whenever he usually said something, it would be some type of humor to lighten up a situation. It was the type of cat he was.

He was happy-go-lucky, reckless-to-restless. It was who he was, and he liked it very much. Only a few cats would understand his need for adventure, or his need to be away from the clearing for a while. Maybe he liked to chase away flocks of birds, or swipe at butterflies, or jump on rocks. It was what he had a knack for. Without it...who would he be? Surely, he might still be a cat named Umbraice, but he wouldn’t be a joy to be around.

Though no one really knew that he refused to sleep inside the warriors’ den. For some odd reason, he enjoyed sleeping outside under the star filled sky. Every night he would go stargazing, and lay down in long green grass until he fallen to sleep. At the first rays of sunlight, he would make it back to the den before anyone noticed he was gone. Not that anyone would notice that he was gone. He was quite the sneaky cat.

‘’Do you ever get any time for yourself at all?’’ He asked her, tilting his head. When he heard her answer to his question, he felt a pity for her. The young deputy felt locked in camp, nothing to do, and wishing to be free. Whereas, Umbraice had nothing to do. He was as free as a bird. Without wings, he was still free to run around with less responsibility, and Auroraflame was the deputy--she carried everyone’s responsibility on her shoulder. Maybe even Grousestar as well. At her next words he strained his ears. He didn’t hear her properly because she was speaking too fast. He leaned in closer, and the only thing he picked up was:

And, start climbing something.

What did she mean by that? Umbraice eyed the ebony feline with his blue gaze. Surely, she didn’t mean what he thought she meant. In that case, the tom happily hopped up to his paws, a brilliant smile displayed on his maw. ‘’Climbing something? Oh, boy! Lemme tell you of the fun I had today!’’ Now he became rambling about his day. How fun it was and how he was hoping to do it again tomorrow. ‘’I was climbing on the side of this large rocky mountain! It was huge, I tell you! I tried to climb up, but somehow a rockfall had started, so all these large rocks!’’ He began crouching playfully onto the ground, becoming dramatic. ‘’Started tumbling down and falling on me! I didn’t think I was going to make it! I thought I was a goner, I swear!’’ He laughed, sitting up again. ‘’But, hey! Look at me, fresh and alive, if I do say so myself.’’ He had settled himself down. He was showing off his cheerful side, and perhaps a bit too much of it. He wouldn’t be surprised if he scared the deputy off, but an idea struck in his head, and he gently jabbed her with his paw. ‘’Hey, maybe I could take you sometime. I know the best places for a little fun...and you’re going to love that mountain. It has a hidden blue lake and everything!’’ He leaned into her, whispering as if it were their little secret. He didn’t want the deputy to feel that she should spend all her time in camp.

Then again, he had to remind himself that she was a deputy and that she had duties. So, once again he removed himself, and became a normal shell. ‘’But, you’re probably busy a lot, so it really doesn’t matter.’’ He honestly would had loved to take her to this place. Just running alongside a mountain, climbing one, and just having fun. It was what she wanted anyway, right? The tom licked his maw, and flicked his ears.

[Empress Of Evil]

Originally Posted by Noire

The silver tabby was at first taken aback. Did she really just insult him like that? He squinted his eyes to stare at her, but his mind was blank. What was he suppose to reply with when it came to that? Umbraice didn’t know, but he felt some of his self-esteem depleting. He pinned his ears back for a second, letting out a nervous laugh. ‘’Right.’’ He clears his throat. If he didn’t have anything to say about it, might as well ignore it. He didn’t like to think that he was ugly. He knew he wasn’t the most handsome around, but he also wasn’t bad looking. The silver tabby was unaware of Auroraflame’s joking matter, not having yet to be exposed to it fully, so instead he sat there uncomfortable, having his eyes fleet around anywhere that might be intriguing to view.

At her next words, he brought his face around, smiling brightly at her. He chuckled at her words, believing them. ‘’Food is indeed delicious. Like, really delicious. Like, it’s a shame that it’s so delicious, and we do little to appreciate it.’’ Food was a delicacy. That much, Umbraice knew. Without food, they would starve. When they starved, they would die. Wipeout in existence. Be extinct. It was the reason why food was important in his nature. Besides that, he needed it to replenish his health after finding something drastic to do. The male snorted, at hearing her next words, and jokingly he added, ‘’Yeah, you look like you need the exercise.’’ Perhaps, calling the deputy fat was mean, but it only a comical joke. He felt that she wouldn’t take any harm to it, especially since she called him ugly earlier. The feline laughed at the thought. As he said this, he gets up and stretched his limbs, bending down and extending his paws, and coming back up to crack a few bones in his neck. A chill ran down his spine from the pleasure. ‘’Food is life for you, and exercise is life for me. I workout...a lot. It’s a shame really.’’ The tom shakes his head before he moved his paws around to flex his muscles. His muscles tightened, and he felt the hardness of them. ‘’But, no working out for me tomorrow. I don’t want to pull anything and risk having to go see Ebonypaw because I wasn’t careful.’’ Not like that would be new with him. He put his paw down, and covers his tail around himself as he pays back attention to Auroraflame.

‘’Ah, of course, I’ve been exposed to that.’’ The tom replied to her comment. He hadn’t expected anything else from Auroraflame. She seemed like the cheerful peppy feline that loved the attention. That loved to talk. This was only because he hadn’t known her on a friendly level. Yet, he was still shaken that she even started talking to him, let alone wanting to sit by him. Though he was enjoying the conversation with the deputy and figured why she had so many friends that she did. She was an absolute joy to be around. He couldn’t help but laugh at her as she said this. He tried to reframe himself from talking too much, wanting to give the other cat a chance to speak. Whenever he usually said something, it would be some type of humor to lighten up a situation. It was the type of cat he was.

He was happy-go-lucky, reckless-to-restless. It was who he was, and he liked it very much. Only a few cats would understand his need for adventure, or his need to be away from the clearing for a while. Maybe he liked to chase away flocks of birds, or swipe at butterflies, or jump on rocks. It was what he had a knack for. Without it...who would he be? Surely, he might still be a cat named Umbraice, but he wouldn’t be a joy to be around.

Though no one really knew that he refused to sleep inside the warriors’ den. For some odd reason, he enjoyed sleeping outside under the star filled sky. Every night he would go stargazing, and lay down in long green grass until he fallen to sleep. At the first rays of sunlight, he would make it back to the den before anyone noticed he was gone. Not that anyone would notice that he was gone. He was quite the sneaky cat.

‘’Do you ever get any time for yourself at all?’’ He asked her, tilting his head. When he heard her answer to his question, he felt a pity for her. The young deputy felt locked in camp, nothing to do, and wishing to be free. Whereas, Umbraice had nothing to do. He was as free as a bird. Without wings, he was still free to run around with less responsibility, and Auroraflame was the deputy--she carried everyone’s responsibility on her shoulder. Maybe even Grousestar as well. At her next words he strained his ears. He didn’t hear her properly because she was speaking too fast. He leaned in closer, and the only thing he picked up was:

And, start climbing something.

What did she mean by that? Umbraice eyed the ebony feline with his blue gaze. Surely, she didn’t mean what he thought she meant. In that case, the tom happily hopped up to his paws, a brilliant smile displayed on his maw. ‘’Climbing something? Oh, boy! Lemme tell you of the fun I had today!’’ Now he became rambling about his day. How fun it was and how he was hoping to do it again tomorrow. ‘’I was climbing on the side of this large rocky mountain! It was huge, I tell you! I tried to climb up, but somehow a rockfall had started, so all these large rocks!’’ He began crouching playfully onto the ground, becoming dramatic. ‘’Started tumbling down and falling on me! I didn’t think I was going to make it! I thought I was a goner, I swear!’’ He laughed, sitting up again. ‘’But, hey! Look at me, fresh and alive, if I do say so myself.’’ He had settled himself down. He was showing off his cheerful side, and perhaps a bit too much of it. He wouldn’t be surprised if he scared the deputy off, but an idea struck in his head, and he gently jabbed her with his paw. ‘’Hey, maybe I could take you sometime. I know the best places for a little fun...and you’re going to love that mountain. It has a hidden blue lake and everything!’’ He leaned into her, whispering as if it were their little secret. He didn’t want the deputy to feel that she should spend all her time in camp.

Then again, he had to remind himself that she was a deputy and that she had duties. So, once again he removed himself, and became a normal shell. ‘’But, you’re probably busy a lot, so it really doesn’t matter.’’ He honestly would had loved to take her to this place. Just running alongside a mountain, climbing one, and just having fun. It was what she wanted anyway, right? The tom licked his maw, and flicked his ears.

In front of her, Auroraflame could see that the tom seemed rather uncomfortable at her words. Oh dear,
the deputy thought, her small grin dropping ever so slightly. The silver tabby hadn't taken her seriously had he? Auroraflame hated it when cats took her seriously each time that she said a joke. It always put the other in an uncomfortable position and the ebony feline felt awkward and rather guilty. Auroraflame absolutely hated feeling awkward. It was really just a shame that she had been born an awkward cat. Looking at Umbraice, Auroraflame could come to the conclusion that the silver tabby wasn't really that bad looking. He was actually better than some of the other toms in the clan. Of course she would never say that out loud though.

"It's always so sad to see someone waste a piece of food that you could've eaten for them," Auroraflame agreed, the awkwardness of the previous situation quickly disappearing. She was glad that the tom had changed the subject. Hopefully for her sake, they could both forget about the misunderstanding and talk about something else. "Oh why thank you. What a nice thing for you to say," Auroraflame responded sarcastically, although it was clear to see the amusement bubbling in her icy blue gaze. Those words seemed to have reminded the deputy of the awkward situation earlier, though she quickly dealt with it and pushed it to the back of her mind. The deputy was always glad to talk to someone who had a great sense of humour. It just lightened up the conversation and made it more enjoyable to be apart of. Looking at the muscles that the silver tabby had, she could see exactly what he meant. "I see what you mean," Auroraflame remarked as she watched him flex. The ebony she-cat looked down at her own limbs. Ripples could be seen through them even just as she relaxed her arms and legs. They certainly weren't as bit as Umbraice's, but they were okay. The deputy tensed her forearms and a small smile grew. Whilst she looked like those small ripples were all she had, when she tensed, she appeared much stronger. Her muscles jutted out more and she looked tougher. These muscles had mostly been gained from doing every day things. For a she-cat like her, Auroraflame could be considered as one of the stronger cats of the clan.

Auroraflame had no idea what kind of an opinion Umbraice had over her, but if she could read his mind, then she would find he had a prediction that was half correct. The she-cat certainly loved to talk and she did like to have the attention on her sometimes, however, there had been many moments in her life where she wished for just a bit of privacy. She wanted to let someone else have the spotlight. It wouldn't be fair if she was like the only well-known cat in the clan, apart from Grousestar that is. Auroraflame was always interested to know what her clanmates thought of her. Not only what they thought of her, but she was always just interested to know their thoughts on in general. Wouldn't it be great fun if she could just read minds?

The deputy had never noticed a silver tabby sleeping out side of the warrior's den. She herself was too busy, even at night time. Auroraflame herself sometimes slept out of the warrior's den. If it was late at night, she wouldn't want to accidentally wake a clanmate from their slumber, so she slept in a sheltered part of the camp. Or, if she was working so hard that she was ready to drop, she would just fall to the ground and let sleep grasp her right on the spot.

Auroraflame would normally give up a lot of her time for her clan. If she overworked, then sometimes she could even get rather annoyed at her clanmates, at other times, she was proud of herself for her commitment. The deputy could only hope that she could have more time to go out and relax in the territory. She longed to do the things she had once done as a warrior. She needed to spread her wings and fly out of her cage.

The ebony she-cat only gave a mere shrug of her shoulders. "Rarely. But if I can get things done fast enough, then I can get about an hour a day at the most," Auroraflame remarked. That was her life story. Wake up, eat, work, eat, work, work some more, see if there's time for a break, then do some more work. The deputy sometimes felt rather envious towards others, however, in the past moons she had learnt to deal with the troubles of work. And to be honest, she actually found some things rather enjoyable to do. However, it wasn't so fun when you were stuck doing that one job all day.

For a short moment, Auroraflame felt her eyelids start to droop downwards, almost as if they were too heavy for her to hold up any longer. This made her realize just how much she needed to catch up on sleep. Even though Auroraflame was a deputy, that didn't make her immune to sleep. She still needed a good amount of sleep just as anyone did and at this moment, that was all she wanted to do. Curl up in a ball and go to sleep. The sound of Umbraice's voice kept her awake. Some would've thought that the ebony deputy was falling asleep because the silver tabby's story was too boring. But really it sounded quite interesting, Auroraflame was just too tired to pay full attention. It really took her quite a lot of effort for the deputy to keep her eyelids open enough so that she didn't look like she was going to fall asleep, but that was exactly what she felt like doing. It was as if she had just been struck with a rabbit to the head. The tom's suggestion filled her with excitement. "That sounds like a great idea!" Auroraflame exclaimed softly, seeing that Umbraice was whispering himself. The deputy really would do anything to get out of camp, and going to see this mountain sounded like a great idea. The she-cat loved mountains. They smelt different from the rest of the territory and they were just such fun to run on. This appeared to be the best idea that Auroraflame had heard in moons.

As quickly as the suggestion had come, it quickly went away as Umbraice started to talk about how she was probably too busy. Oh no! I'm free to go!" Auroraflame broke in, desperation swimming in her icy blue hues. "Please, take me to this mountain. I really want to get out of here," Auroraflame said softly, a pleading look in her eyes. It was like the deputy was a kit, begging their father to take them out into the territory.

[~Vixen~]

hi so whats going on here? )
Raccoonstep Grumbled pulliing himself from a reckless sleep. He got to his paws and padded into the clearing.

[Brilliance]

Originally Posted by Empress Of Evil

In front of her, Auroraflame could see that the tom seemed rather uncomfortable at her words. Oh dear,
the deputy thought, her small grin dropping ever so slightly. The silver tabby hadn't taken her seriously had he? Auroraflame hated it when cats took her seriously each time that she said a joke. It always put the other in an uncomfortable position and the ebony feline felt awkward and rather guilty. Auroraflame absolutely hated feeling awkward. It was really just a shame that she had been born an awkward cat. Looking at Umbraice, Auroraflame could come to the conclusion that the silver tabby wasn't really that bad looking. He was actually better than some of the other toms in the clan. Of course she would never say that out loud though.

"It's always so sad to see someone waste a piece of food that you could've eaten for them," Auroraflame agreed, the awkwardness of the previous situation quickly disappearing. She was glad that the tom had changed the subject. Hopefully for her sake, they could both forget about the misunderstanding and talk about something else. "Oh why thank you. What a nice thing for you to say," Auroraflame responded sarcastically, although it was clear to see the amusement bubbling in her icy blue gaze. Those words seemed to have reminded the deputy of the awkward situation earlier, though she quickly dealt with it and pushed it to the back of her mind. The deputy was always glad to talk to someone who had a great sense of humour. It just lightened up the conversation and made it more enjoyable to be apart of. Looking at the muscles that the silver tabby had, she could see exactly what he meant. "I see what you mean," Auroraflame remarked as she watched him flex. The ebony she-cat looked down at her own limbs. Ripples could be seen through them even just as she relaxed her arms and legs. They certainly weren't as bit as Umbraice's, but they were okay. The deputy tensed her forearms and a small smile grew. Whilst she looked like those small ripples were all she had, when she tensed, she appeared much stronger. Her muscles jutted out more and she looked tougher. These muscles had mostly been gained from doing every day things. For a she-cat like her, Auroraflame could be considered as one of the stronger cats of the clan.

Auroraflame had no idea what kind of an opinion Umbraice had over her, but if she could read his mind, then she would find he had a prediction that was half correct. The she-cat certainly loved to talk and she did like to have the attention on her sometimes, however, there had been many moments in her life where she wished for just a bit of privacy. She wanted to let someone else have the spotlight. It wouldn't be fair if she was like the only well-known cat in the clan, apart from Grousestar that is. Auroraflame was always interested to know what her clanmates thought of her. Not only what they thought of her, but she was always just interested to know their thoughts on in general. Wouldn't it be great fun if she could just read minds?

The deputy had never noticed a silver tabby sleeping out side of the warrior's den. She herself was too busy, even at night time. Auroraflame herself sometimes slept out of the warrior's den. If it was late at night, she wouldn't want to accidentally wake a clanmate from their slumber, so she slept in a sheltered part of the camp. Or, if she was working so hard that she was ready to drop, she would just fall to the ground and let sleep grasp her right on the spot.

Auroraflame would normally give up a lot of her time for her clan. If she overworked, then sometimes she could even get rather annoyed at her clanmates, at other times, she was proud of herself for her commitment. The deputy could only hope that she could have more time to go out and relax in the territory. She longed to do the things she had once done as a warrior. She needed to spread her wings and fly out of her cage.

The ebony she-cat only gave a mere shrug of her shoulders. "Rarely. But if I can get things done fast enough, then I can get about an hour a day at the most," Auroraflame remarked. That was her life story. Wake up, eat, work, eat, work, work some more, see if there's time for a break, then do some more work. The deputy sometimes felt rather envious towards others, however, in the past moons she had learnt to deal with the troubles of work. And to be honest, she actually found some things rather enjoyable to do. However, it wasn't so fun when you were stuck doing that one job all day.

For a short moment, Auroraflame felt her eyelids start to droop downwards, almost as if they were too heavy for her to hold up any longer. This made her realize just how much she needed to catch up on sleep. Even though Auroraflame was a deputy, that didn't make her immune to sleep. She still needed a good amount of sleep just as anyone did and at this moment, that was all she wanted to do. Curl up in a ball and go to sleep. The sound of Umbraice's voice kept her awake. Some would've thought that the ebony deputy was falling asleep because the silver tabby's story was too boring. But really it sounded quite interesting, Auroraflame was just too tired to pay full attention. It really took her quite a lot of effort for the deputy to keep her eyelids open enough so that she didn't look like she was going to fall asleep, but that was exactly what she felt like doing. It was as if she had just been struck with a rabbit to the head. The tom's suggestion filled her with excitement. "That sounds like a great idea!" Auroraflame exclaimed softly, seeing that Umbraice was whispering himself. The deputy really would do anything to get out of camp, and going to see this mountain sounded like a great idea. The she-cat loved mountains. They smelt different from the rest of the territory and they were just such fun to run on. This appeared to be the best idea that Auroraflame had heard in moons.

As quickly as the suggestion had come, it quickly went away as Umbraice started to talk about how she was probably too busy. Oh no! I'm free to go!" Auroraflame broke in, desperation swimming in her icy blue hues. "Please, take me to this mountain. I really want to get out of here," Auroraflame said softly, a pleading look in her eyes. It was like the deputy was a kit, begging their father to take them out into the territory.

Umbraice glanced at Auroraflame with curious orbs. He flicked his tail, she sounded desperate. It was like she was pleading for him to take her away. Umbraice wished he could. He longed to let her see the places he’s gone and the adventures he had. He longed to take her to this mountain where she was able to be free from the line of duty. The tom hesitated for a moment. What if Grousestar needed her? Or any other clan mate? He couldn’t just swipe her away because he wanted the attention. Then again, when was there going to be another time that he got her attention?

Besides that, she looked pretty worn out. Tired. That was expected since she worked so hard during daylight hours. She hardly got enough sleep. She looked terribly exhausted, and this made the tom pity her. Slightly, though. He doubted that she wanted to be pitied. And, from the looks of her muscles he noticed earlier, she didn’t need it. It was a quite surprise that she had any. He met many she-cats that were on the leaner side. That was lithe, not built. Though Auroraflame wasn’t abnormally built, she was a nice size, and the silver tabby found that he liked that. This made him think that she worked out as well. Was she athletic as he was?

Why wouldn’t she be? She literally wants to go to the mountain he just came from. The tom didn’t mind going again though if he were to take her--to take anybody. It was fun when it was two instead of one. It was also dangerous. Mountains were no joke. Umbraice knew that cats got lost within the depth of the mountains, or predators lurked around waiting for their next meal to come by. Umbraice was never afraid of that, but he also couldn’t risk putting the deputy in danger. The tom would never live that day down if something bad happened to them, and he wasn’t there to protect her.

As he looked at Auroraflame, he debated in his head whether she would need protection. From oberservance, the she-cat looked like she could handle her own. She seemed like the cat that could fight whenever danger was around the corner. This did little to affect him. Umbraice knew that they were a clan, a team, and if one was down, then the other must fight in honor. Umbraice was never afraid to fight. In fact, he would prepare himself for a fight. It brought excitement into his life. The absolute thrill of striking an enemy. That would appear rude, whatsoever. He did not fight for sport, nor did he kill for entertainment. He fought in defense. To protect himself. And, others around him.

‘’You seem tired, though.’’ He responds, his voice laced with concern. A tired cat never lasted through the day. He knew that Auroraflame should get some sleep. She deserved that much. ‘’If you’re exhausted, we can wait. The mountain will not go anywhere. That I can promise you.’’ He says, proudly, and sits up straighter, puffing out his chest. ‘’Unless an earthquake come, then we’re out of luck.’’ He added, smirking. The tom knew he couldn’t tell the she-cat what to do. But, she knew what she needed. If she didn’t want rest, he would be happy to lead her out of the clan and into the wilderness. Into the style that he knew was his life daily. For some odd reason, he had a feeling that she would fall in love with it.

Umbraice carried the notion that the two were alike in many ways. He came to this conclusion at not only noticing her love for food, but as well flexing her muscles. He also noticed that she carried a comical side to her, and nothing could beat that. He figured that the two of them would clash well...and perhaps be great friends for a long while.

It was sad that she only got an hour of free time...how ever did she keep up with her friends or her family? How ever did she have time for herself? Alone time was essential when it came to the tom. He needed a moment of relaxation away from the clan. Only, his relaxation included finding some type of reckless thing to do. When a cat thinks of relaxation, they think of laying around, watching the sky, and whatever else there was to do. It would be hard for this tom to ever do such a thing since he loved the thrill of running around. Being energetic. It was who he was. ‘’One hour a day to yourself? That doesn’t sound like a thrilling life to live.’’ He answered honestly. He felt bad that everyone else could live their lives and seek fun, but Auroraflame, just like Grousestar was always on her paws--doing this, handling that. ‘’I have to admit that I admire you alot.’’ He purred softly. Who else would have the power to do the day’s work and provide a calm atmosphere for their clan?

Perhaps, the ebony feline did need to settle away from the clan. Just for a moment. Just so she could be herself. That was something Umbraice wanted to unwind. For the longest, he only observed her work. From a distance, he could only see that she was a bubbling character that handled serious matters. That was all he was exposed to from her. The tom seen her around the camp, sometimes offering her a small smile before he would dart away to do whatever he pleased, but he never stuck around. Now, here is was. Talking to her. Somewhat getting to know her. He used to doubt that she would want to leave the camp and go out to explore. He used to think she was a sweet, serious cat, but now...he’s having other thoughts.

So, far, he was exposed to her athletic side, her exploration side. Did she really want to see this mountain? Would she have wanted to see other places that he visited? Explored? Experienced?

Though her blue orbs pleaded to him for him to take her. Maybe it was what she needed to release some pent up tension. Umbraice got up once more, and he circled around her until he was on her side, ‘’Buuut, since you seem to be begging, and I can’t resist a beggar, ‘’ The tom smirked, joking. ‘’I suppose that we have an appointment with a mountain that is awaiting us.’’ Getting out of places was the best thing that Umbraice loved to do. Get out of it, or get into it. He seemed to be a professional of the sort. As he walked a bit ahead of her, the tom flicked his tail. ‘’Are you coming or what?’’ He called back, a new tone of excitement entering his voice. However, if she needed to stay for much needed rest, he didn’t mind that either. The mountain can wait, but her needs could not. Other than that, there may even be a resting spot for her to nap if they took this adventure. Whatever may happen, the tom was eager. He always had been eager.