[Clover]

Originally Posted by Hexict

@Clover


The tom noticed Blessed's fur beginning to fluff up, but he decided he was too exhausted to think about too much about it. Rock wasn't the best at reading others anyway. Due to living on his own for most of his life, he basically only knew hostile expressions - or pretty much anything that was straight forward and obvious. So he wasn't sure what Blessed could be thinking at that moment. Probably something I said, he shrugged it off.

As they both gathered what they could in order to make a nest, he began to wonder what would happen in the morning. They had agreed upon resting for the night in order to stay warm and gather their energy, but they never said what they would do when they woke up. He was sure that he wouldn't gain too much energy from just one night - especially since he would spending it with a stranger in a strange cave in a strange clearing with little supply for a nest. His grey fur prickled a bit at the thought. Rock doubted that they would just go their separate ways. This was a nice clearing, he certainly didn't wish to leave it and wasn't sure if Blessed would either.

When they both met up again to see what they had gathered, he was still cautious towards her. Despite being unaware and oblivious towards emotions he still felt that something suddenly seemed... off about the silver molly. When their gaze met, she didn't seem to look away at first and he was unsure as to why that was. Rock felt a bit self-conscious due to this. The tom did notice her ears blush and at first he believed it to be because of the temperature. But when she began speaking she seemed flustered and awkward now, where before she had spoken clearly. "Yeah, we should probably take them to the cave now. Maybe we should sleep soon... I mean, the more we sleep the better right?" He mewed, his tone a bit gruff still.

The dull tabby stiffened as he began to suspect something. Does she... like me? He felt his out pelt heat up at the thought of Blessed possibly forming a crush towards him. No, we hardly know each other. We're practically strangers... but just the thought of her feeling that way towards him made Rock start thinking himself. Sure Blessed was actually quite beautiful, with her silver pelt and sparkling blue orbs, not to mention that she seemed strong... Rock shook his head. He wanted to block the thoughts away. Blessed was beautiful and strong and that scared him.
His whole life he was trying to prove that he was strong enough to live on his own, and that caused him to become distrustful towards other and he feared that becoming close to someone would just weaken him. And if he fell for Blessed, then he would trust her and that trust would bring down his walls and leave him vulnerable and weak.

And even though he didn't want that to happen, the though and possibility was now already in his head.

"Yes. It's... Umm.. Not terribly late... But the.. the cold is.. biting," she whispered in response, ears flattening tighter against her skull, the sensitive insides tickled by the soft fur of her head. She flicked her tail anxiously, feeling naked and exposed as this strange emotion filled her. The last time this had happened, she had been betrayed and left for dead in the brisk weather of leaf-bare. She gulped down her emotions of anxiety and discomfiture. In a burst of breathless delight, she had fallen for a stranger, and it was not comfortable.

Blessed forced her hackles down, and leaned down towards the pile, picking up her small contribution in her mouth. She straightened up, her head held high on a stiff neck, trying to appear cold and passive, but knowing she was failing, her eyes crinkling and her whiskers held taught. She padded past him with a deliberate quickness, her feet sinking into the freezing snow. She beelined towards the small cave, lifting up her legs to help her trot faster. She glanced back at him for a moment, then focused her eyes forward.

The cave was a hollow in a relatively small ridge, a relatively deep recessed dip. Her ears slowly perked up, and she looked around the cave tentatively, glad for the distraction. It was definitely solid, with thin covering of vines over the entrance. The plants brushed over her back and she shuddered; they felt like snakes, slithering over her sides and dropping down in the back.

Filtered light fell in strips across the floor and walls; it was dimly lit and the wan light made it hard to see, but she was mildly surprised at the conditions of the hollow. The ground was smooth, expected for a shallow depression, which could make a good place for a nest. The only issue was that they would have to curl up together, and she wasn't sure that would fly with Rock. She huffed around the moss and then dropped it by the low dip, ears flicking boredly as she waited for the muscular tom.