[lone]

Originally Posted by Pathos

[i think i'm going to use times new roman? it looks nicer than arial tbh.]


The smaller-than-average warrior gazed up at Greystep, watching his actions. Truly, Acornflash was intrigued. By now, he knew not to ask questions about anything that seemed different than what he was used to, but he couldn't stop his mind from wandering. It was just something that he did. Acorn's features softened for a moment after his statement, observing his clanmate. Greystep was, admittedly, much larger than Acornflash, which intimidated him the slightest bit, but it would be nothing to worry about, so long as he didn't focus on that sole fact. At his companion's minor outburst of anger, the dark tom's optics widened in surprise and a touch of fright, the fur along his spine rippling. Automatically assuming that he had done something wrong, Acornflash murmured a soft apology, only able to be heard if one listened closely or focused on the movements on his mouth. He wasn't sure what he had done that had sparked his anger, but the one thing he had falsely thought to be true was that Acornflash himself had caused it. He hated the idea of blaming someone else for something, even if said thing was in no way related to him. The thought of blaming himself went much smoother in his mind than if he decided to assume that it wasn't his fault.

But, at the sound of Greystep's voice, Acornflash relaxed some. Hope laced his thoughts; maybe if he acted like he hadn't just gotten frightened over the tom's slight display of irritation, it would all blow over. He still wasn't completely calm, though. An observation had lodged itself in his mind, unable to be swept away by the train of thought: Greystep really was a larger cat, much larger than himself. He hadn't noticed it earlier—or at least, if he had, he chose to ignore it—but now, with his show of fright, he couldn't dislodge that thought. At Greystep's timid question, Acornflash blinked. "Why wouldn't I be nice to you?" he meowed, tilting his head in confusion. It didn't compute in his head. Of course he would be nice to Greystep... right? With more earnest intent, he continued. "Who hasn't been nice to you?" His optics hardened, a glint of worry in them. Of course, Acornflash had had his own share of negative cats, but he didn't think that some cats would be so terrible to this poor tom that he would have to be suspicious of newcomers!

Too soon, however, Greystep had said more. For now he would have to take his mind off of the previous subject and focus on what was at hand. "Well, at least that Dusk Syndicate wasn't there! I think I would've run away too," Acornflash chuckled, grinning at Greystep. "I've never been the best at fighting, and from what I've heard, they're really good at that sort of thing," he added. The Syndicate scared him the most on his list of frightening things—they were not only foreign to him, but they were also murderous! Never a good combination. He would never admit it, though, and would always play it off with jokes or a laugh.

The grey tom was somewhat embarassed that he had frightened the younger cat. His ears went back against his head, but he didn't say anything. Being older, not by much he assumed, he wanted to set a better example then the one he had for the brown cat. "S-su-sor-soh-suh-sor-ry. Sorry," He mewed, his ears flattening themselves down even further. Of course embarassment played a huge part in this, and regret. Why hadn't he just remained still? No way to frighten younger cats there. Just sit still and pretend to be some sort of a...rock, or a stationary object. That was how he reacted when he was frightened. As for how he reacted in a situation like this, well...normally breaking down was a pretty normal response for the tom. But not this time. This time he was more mortified then anything else, frozen with regret and worry that something could go badly wrong. What else could he do, though? He'd already frightened Acornflash. Made a bad first impression by hiding away. Cautiously, somewhat clumsily, he looked as though he were trying to make contact with the younger cat before moving away in a shuffling manner, muttering something to himself as he did so. There was no stammer when Greystep was talking to himself.
　
There was no...anything, really. It was more of a quiet murmur then anything else, just to calm himself down. It worked, too! At least...he hoped it worked. The tom's confusion at his words puzzled Greystep. Why wouldn't he be mean, was the real question-- wasn't it? That was just how the older cat's mind worked. After moons of being scared, and alone, it was only natural that he would have some suspicion. Probably would have been stranger had he not. Acornflash seemed like a decent cat, a nice cat, even... wasn't he? Realizing he still hadn't answered the question, Greystep swallowed slightly. "B-be-buh-because I'm w-wu-weh-weird. Because I'm weird." He mewed somewhat stubbornly. This was something the large tom had been told often. He was weird. Abnormal. He wasn't the type of cat that should be living in SkyClan with the others, going on patrol and...fighting. The thought sent shudders down his spine. Fighting. He hated fighting. It scared him, to be honest-- which was strange. He was quite strong, and when he did get up the nerve to fight, did so very well. And yet he was still scared. "L-lots of c-cats," The tom shrugged. His stammer had almost stopped now, which he was glad about.
　
Just as long as things kept going in this direction, nice and easy, he would be fine. Just as long as no one mentioned an uncomfortable subject, Greystep would be able to keep his vocal cords under control. "H-have y-you e-ever seen a D-Dusk Syndicate c-cat?" He asked, cocking his head to the side. He'd seen one once. Embarassingly enough, they hadn't even been close to him and he had been terrified. The thought that they might soon join the Gathering, coming to the safe place where he felt like the Clans really were able to connect scared him. Forbidden love sometimes started at Gatherings, and he worried that someone from SkyClan might fall in love with a Dusk Syndicate cat. The idea of that! It was horrible. Who would ever want to be with someone so...scary? He wondered what would make that happen. And yet, the Dusk Syndicate cat that he had seen had looked quite friendly. Had he not been such a coward, he might have been tempted to go and say hello. But he had learned that friendly-looking cats were not always good cats. During the battles with the Clans, for instance, there had been some quite friendly looking cats who had attacked him. Had Acornflash fought in those battles? He might have asked, had he not been so...nervous.