New Beginnings (Open)

[Dogwolf12]

Honey smoothed her singed and earth-stained pelt in a vain attempt to calm herself. The shower that had extinguished the fire had been brief but welcome; it had allowed her to escape alive. The leaves murmured as she washed the dirt and the soot away.

She had no family now. That was a fact that she couldn't process, try as she might, due to the dull throbbing of pain from scraped paws and the sharp feeling of adrenaline still surging through her pelt. She would have time to grieve for her mother and sisters later; for now she needed to focus on herself.

She took a breath as she padded away from her home, heading into greener territory where skylarks still chirped merrily. She left them alone as she headed near a bush, where the scent of mouse permeated the air. Leaping, she managed to catch its neck with her claw, barely managing to kill it. The skylarks' jubilant chirping turned to alarm calls as the bush rustled and Honey ate greedily, kicking earth over the remaining bones as she emerged.


Water was next on her priority list, and soon she came across a small brook with minnows darting in the shallows. She dipped her muzzle into the water, warm from sunlight, and watched as the minnows hurried away from the ripples she made.


She came back to a hollowed-out log as the sun dipped below the trees. She lay down, the hard wood floor of the log reminding her of her kithood home, where she played with Dawn and her mother, and occasionally Petal, claws impacting the wall of the tree when one of them lost their balance. She curled herself up more tightly, until she had buried herself in her own fur.


For the first time since the fire, Honey cried.

[BlueGamerGirl]

Moon stretched her sleepy self as she woke up from her little temporary den in a holly bush, shaking off the little bits of frost that clinger to her medium-short, but thick and straight, grey fur. She poked her head out and looked around in the fading leafbare sunlight, her belly growling in hunger.

She looked around for some prey, noticing the bare trees and the absence of abundant life in these woods. She’s padded around quietly, following some of the little signs and trails that the smaller animals left. She noticed a hollow log and heard a noise emanating from it, and decided to investigate.

She silently creeped over and peered in. It was another cat! The She-cat seemed younger than her, and seemed to be upset about something. Moon didn’t know what to do, so she backed away silently and made a slow, noisy approach so that the cat would hear her. She peered in again to make it seem like she just got there, and made a puzzled expression.

@Dogwolf12

[Dogwolf12]

Honey heard a noise as she was mourning, startling her out of her thoughts. Sleep had come uneasily that night; imaginary snatches of flame and faint noises had disturbed her rest. She pricked her ears again, wiping tears off her fur with her paws. The noise still existed.

She turned to face the sound, which seemed to belong to a gray cat. Her deep blue eyes seemed puzzled - Honey knew that cats usually settled in bushes or stumps, not bare logs. The wood made a noise as she stood up, ears pinned against the rough bark.
"Sorry if I disturbed anything. I'm Honey." She decided that she would shuffle back. She didn't want to get in anyone's face. Now that she was a safe distance away from the cat, she relaxed a small bit. The cat hadn't attacked her yet, so she'd be fine.



Ignoring sounds of bark chips and snow falling off the outside of the log and the errant smells of prey, somewhat masked by oak, as they scrambled to avoid the disturbance, she gave the other cat a small smile. She didn't need to burden this cat. @BlueGamerGirl

[BlueGamerGirl]

Moon watched her as the she cat stood up and spoke.
“I’m Moon.” She replied back, “You didn’t need to apologize, because I was just about to say the same thing: are you ok?” She saw as she backed up a bit, and copied her, moving back so that Honey could get out and walk away if she wished, sitting on a patch of rock.

Thinking that Honey was probably wondering if she was going to attack, she said,”oh, by the way, I’m not the kind of cat that attacks unprovoked, and from your demeanor I think you aren’t either.” Moon looked around checking the area for others, wether it be prey or a potential enemy.
@Dogwolf12

[Dogwolf12]

Honey crouched, slowly easing herself out of the hollow log. The frigid snow speared at her pawpads as she did so. She rested on a patch of snow, enjoying the leafbare winds as they wove around her fur, bringing with them promises of better lives.



"I'm alright. I had a loss recently, but I'm healthy, and that's more than some cats can say. Thank you for asking. And I'm glad to hear that you're not one of those cats." She ruffled her fur, painfully aware of how stilted she sounded.

"How are you?" she asked, feeling that it was only polite to reciprocate. Moon looked robust enough despite the season, her eyes alert as she scanned the clearing, so she knew that the answer would probably be positive.
She had finally gotten used to the snow's stinging, feeling it fade from prickling to a dull murmur, a reminder that the cold could hurt. If she could get used to the bitter cold nipping at her paws, maybe she could also get used to being alone. @BlueGamerGirl

[BlueGamerGirl]

After hearing her speak, Moon thought that Honey kind of reminded her of herself when her family... She shivered, blocking out the rest of the thought. She didn’t want to go back to thinking about what happened a few moons ago.
Instead, she focused on the next thing Honey said. “I was just starting to hunt. In fact, we could hunt together if you want,” She offered. It would distract her from the past.

She smiled at Honey, and said, “I even know a good leafbare trick to catch a good amount of prey at nighttime.” The sunlight continued to diminish as night fell on them, and all the daytime animals would be heading to bed right now.

@Dogwolf12

[Dogwolf12]

Honey smiled back as Moon offered to hunt - the season was cruel, and two sets of claws would always be better than one.
"That sounds lovely." Honey replied, eyes on the moon, which was just starting to peek out from its snowy bed. "I'm afraid I'm rather inexperienced at hunting, so thank you for offering to teach me your trick."

She could hear owls above her, starting to emerge and seek their own prey. Competition was always fierce in leaf-bare, when cats and other predators alike tussled to stay alive. Her own mother had come back with a nasty cut on her cheek just before the fire, a sign of another desperate cat needing to feed themselves. But she was also realising that cooperation could also feed mouths.
Her pelt - entirely the wrong colour for the season - twitched in excitement as she came to her new hunting partner.
"So, when do we start?" @BlueGamerGirl (sorry for the late reply)

[BlueGamerGirl]

Originally Posted by Dogwolf12

Honey smiled back as Moon offered to hunt - the season was cruel, and two sets of claws would always be better than one.
"That sounds lovely." Honey replied, eyes on the moon, which was just starting to peek out from its snowy bed. "I'm afraid I'm rather inexperienced at hunting, so thank you for offering to teach me your trick."

She could hear owls above her, starting to emerge and seek their own prey. Competition was always fierce in leaf-bare, when cats and other predators alike tussled to stay alive. Her own mother had come back with a nasty cut on her cheek just before the fire, a sign of another desperate cat needing to feed themselves. But she was also realising that cooperation could also feed mouths.
Her pelt - entirely the wrong colour for the season - twitched in excitement as she came to her new hunting partner.
"So, when do we start?" @BlueGamerGirl (sorry for the late reply)

Moon nodded, and replied, "Right now." spotting a giant oak tree not far away. She padded up to it, noticing a hole with a squirrel nest in it. "Ok, you stay here and catch the squirrels that escape; I'm going up in the tree to flush them out." Moon remembered when her mother came up with this hunting move one leafbare, taking turns going up into the tree. Moon ended up usually being the one climbing in trees because she was always lighter, smaller, and more nimble, and she loved it. She started climbing up a tree a bit away in order to stealthily make her way toward the great oak tree.

(Its ok) @Dogwolf12

[Dogwolf12]

Honey nodded, forcing her sparking pelt to go still and coming to the base of the oak. The snow-dampened leaves hid their quarry as Honey watched Moon climb - she hoped she wouldn't fall.
Honey slid out her claws, intently focused on the oak base and the scufflings of squirrels as they retrieved nuts from their winter stores. Honey's mother had told her that no matter what in leafbare, the squirrels would have meat on their bones due to these stores.
The gray scene was punctuated every so often by Moon's fur. She thanked the stars for the light dusting of snow that muted her golden pelt. Everything alert and alive, claws ready, she waited. @BlueGamerGirl

[BlueGamerGirl]

Originally Posted by Dogwolf12

Honey nodded, forcing her sparking pelt to go still and coming to the base of the oak. The snow-dampened leaves hid their quarry as Honey watched Moon climb - she hoped she wouldn't fall.
Honey slid out her claws, intently focused on the oak base and the scufflings of squirrels as they retrieved nuts from their winter stores. Honey's mother had told her that no matter what in leafbare, the squirrels would have meat on their bones due to these stores.
The gray scene was punctuated every so often by Moon's fur. She thanked the stars for the light dusting of snow that muted her golden pelt. Everything alert and alive, claws ready, she waited. @BlueGamerGirl

Moon clambered on in the tree boughs toward the great oak, seeing Honey in position. It was always a bit harder to climb in leafbare when the tree limbs were frozen and snow covered, but she was well practiced in it. Her blue eyes scanned the treetops for the best paw steps, and her grey and white pelt camouflaged well with the grey tree bark, snowfall, and nighttime gloom.

When she reached the oak limbs, she looked over at the den to make sure there were squirrels in it. She saw at least one fuzzy body, maybe more. Light as a feather, she crept forward until she could jump on the thick branch right below the nest and get them.

She bunched her haunches, ready for the jump.